Rule 44
by cobalt-blue
Summary: Tim gets a disturbing email from a friend that leads to unfortunate secrets coming to light. Can the MCRT work with the OSI to solve the murder of Michael & Gillian Austin, & can they avert conflict w/ a certain cryptid in the wilds of Northern California? Many heroes from both shows are spotlighted, & we find out what has happened to the OSI since Bionic Ever After. Season 13.
1. Chapter 1

Tim McGee looked at the address of the email. It was unlike Gillian to send an email directly to his work address, but he was always glad to hear from the young woman who'd been his best friend during his undergraduate work at Johns Hopkins studying in bio medical engineering. She was a Navy Researcher working on ways of helping divers adapt better and faster to changes in pressure, and he was her research assistant. And Tim was honest enough with himself that although they'd been very close friends, he had always wished there could have been more. But she'd eventually met and married an older man, an Air Force officer who's father had been the commander of both Apollos 17 and 19.

Tim had stayed in contact with Gillian Austin over the years, neither one willing to let the friendship die. They'd exchanged emails, updates on their family life, and stayed in close contact. He was hoping to eventually introduce her and her husband to Delilah, something he was sure that both women would enjoy.

Gillian had even come to see him in the hospital after the bombing incident at the Yard. She'd gone a long way in helping him get his head back on straight about the mission. In a lot of ways, even though she was married and he was engaged, they were sounding boards for each other when it came to the non-classified details of their jobs. She'd told him of the frustrations she was going through with adjusting to the adoption of the twins, Harper and Haven, and he'd regaled her with stories of Gibbs' redheads and rules. He'd even agreed to o be Harper and Haven's godfather, a request that surprised him since Major Austin's family was rather prominent in DC circles, but he'd accepted gladly.

Haven and Harper Austin were two highly intelligent, precocious and charming children that had wormed their way into McGee's heart over the last five years. Guiltily, he realized that the last time he saw them was almost a year ago at their eleventh birthday. He knew that they had to be driving their parents to distraction by now.

And it was this last part that sent his stomach in his shoes when he saw the subject line of the email: Rule 44! He sat back in his chair and looked at the body of the text. It was simply a series of statements, _"You once lost your heart on a world where leaves sing and dreams find life. Your age when we met. Michael's age when he crashed. Your grade in Niosynthetics._ "

"What's wrong McGee?" Ellie asked from her desk.

Tim shook his head and said, "I don't know."

"Figure it out later, McGee. We got two dead officers and a wrecked house in Chevy Chase. Grab your gear."

Tim's blood ran cold. "Boss."

"Get a move on McGee," Gibbs replied as he headed toward the elevator.

"Gibbs," Tim said again, his blood running cold."

Something in Tim's voice must have caught his boss' attention. He stopped and asked with his usual annoyed tone, "What is it McGee?"

"Please tell me the address isn't 2324 Ojai Lane."

Gibbs stopped and looked at him, his own blue-gray eyes narrowing to slits. "What do you know McGee?"

Gibbs didn't have to confirm his worst fears, all he did was grab his bag, his gun, an extra magazine of rounds, and raced toward the door. As he brushed past the stunned figures of Tony and Ellie, Gibbs grabbed his arm and pulled him around face to face. "What's wrong McGee?"

McGee fought back the panic in his soul and said, "Rule 44, Boss. Rule 44."

"Damn!" Tony said as he picked up his pace toward the elevator." Tim knew that Tony had no idea what he was talking about, but he knew the importance of that particular rule. It was part of Gibbs' emergency rules."

As the elevator closed around them, Ellie asked, "What's Rule 44?"

"First things first. Hide the women and children." Tim just nodded and showed Tony the email subject line on his phone. "Why is the first four crossed out?"

Gibbs looked over at the email and said, "Just hide the children."

"Who is this Lieutenant Commander Gillian Austin?" Tony asked. "And how does she know about Gibbs' rules?"

"An old friend from my days in college. We've stayed friends over the years. A"

"You've got a friend?" Tony asked.

"I have a life outside of this office, Tony." McGee said. "I've known the Austin's for years. Never got to meet Michael's father, something that I would love to do."

"Why's that?" Ellie asked.

"Because he holds the record for the longest moon walk in history."

Gibbs looked over at him and asked, " _That_ Austin?"

"Yeah Boss," Tim said as the elevator to the automobile pool opened. He tried not to think about what they'd find when they got to the restored Queen Anne in Chevy Chase.

Gibbs didn't say much as he drove McGee toward the address. The others were following up in Bishop's truck in case they had to split up, which was not an unusual event. He knew that Tim had maintained some of his friendships outside of NCIS, something for which he actually admired the man. It was a difficult thing to do, to keep friends who understood missed parties, and sudden phone calls that required a quick departure. Of course he suspected an Air Force Major and a Navy Lieutenant Commander would be such a family of friends.

Arriving at the scene well before Ducky's van, Gibbs noted that there were more than just police cars present. There was at least one BMW with government plates. Looking over at the house, he noted that one of the support columns for the front porch was smashed outward and the roof was tilted. The large bay window just off the porch was completely shattered, and there were several bodies lying on the ground as the police were taking pictures.

A raven haired woman wearing a business suit was talking to the police. She looked over at Gibbs and sighed as if she were expecting him. Gibbs instructed his team to spread out as he went to talk to the spook. Holding out his ID he said, "Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS Major Crimes Response Team."

The woman nodded, looked at the team and said to the police investigator, "Let NCIS handle this, all except for Major Austin's body. _My team_ will be taking him." Turning to Gibbs, she held out her own ID and said, "Katherine Goldman, Office of Scientific Intelligence."

"What's the OSI's involvement in this case, Agent Goldman?"

She smiled and said, "I'd say classified, but then you'd have either agent McGee or Agent Bishop try and hack the OSI's computers, so I'll tell you this much. Major Austin was part of an ongoing OSI research program, and your ME doesn't have the clearance to handle the body. We'll gladly share information with you, but his body is classified. I don't even have access to it. I'm just here to secure the body on the personal orders of the head of the OSI, who happens to be the major's father."

"I can't complete my investigation without all the evidence, Agent Goldman."

"Be that as it may, Agent Gibbs, that's the way this stands, and you're only getting that courtesy because of Agent McGee's friendship with Major Austin and his family."

"Hello Kate," McGee said stepping up to her. "How are you?"

"Hello, Tim," she replied. "I'm sorry you're getting caught up in this," she said.

"You know this woman, McGee?" Gibbs demanded.

"Yeah, Boss," Tim said. "I met her before I became part of NCIS. OSI offered me a research job with Doctor Wells, but I turned it down."

"Still don't know why," Kate said. "You could have easily become Rudy's successor."

Tim sighed and pointed toward the house and said, "Look at that Kate, and tell me you don't know why. I've already had one person I care about nearly killed because of my job with NCIS, I don't want my family to have to deal with the kinds of threats the OSI goes after." He stopped and asked, "Any sign of the children?"

"Bethany is with Jaime. She's safe," she said.

"And Harper and Haven?" he demanded.

She shook her head and said, "No idea. We know they were here when the attack occurred, but there's no sign of them." Then sighing she said, "Come walk with me, Tim." Then looking over at Gibbs she added, "With your permission, Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs nodded wondering what was going on. He didn't like the idea of one of his team members going off like this, but if she could give him a clue as to what was going on, then he'd take it. Turning back to his team, he stepped up to Bishop and said, "When we get back to the Yard I want you to find out exactly what security clearances Tim holds."

"Gibbs?" she asked.

"OSI is willing to talk to him, and not me. I want to know why," he told her.

"That's strange," Bishop said.

"Why?" Gibbs asked her.

"Because the OSI wouldn't even consider my application. They sent it back unopened. If they're willing to consider him a possible successor for Doctor Wells, then what are _we_ missing?"

"Who is Doctor Wells?" Gibbs asked.

"Doctor Rudy Wells is the world's foremost expert in bio-medical replacement and augmentation, human computer interface, and nuclear cell development. If Tim's that good, then why is he here?"

Gibbs thought about it and then thought about what he'd told Goldman. "I think he's already answered that, Bishop. But you've got a point. There would seem to be more to McGee than we knew. Find out about it."

"I'll get on it when we get back," she said.

Gibbs nodded and said, "Let's get to work."

As they went to the front door, DiNozzo met them and said, "Looks like a major brawl went on in here, Boss. He pointed around where a very high end sofa was sticking out of one of the walls. The bar separating the living room from the dining room was smashed through. Several bodies were lying around with crushed skulls, gunshot wounds with what looked like burn marks on them. Neat holes with scorching around them were in several places along with bullet holes stitching up the walls. A sure sign of automatic weapons fire.

"How many dead?"

"Six heavily armed assailants, and Major and Lieutenant Commander Austin. It looks like the Lieutenant Commander was tortured. Ducky can tell us more.

"Process it all," Gibbs said. "I want every piece of information you can get from this place. OSI says they'll keep us in the loop, but I don't trust them. Major Austin was the son of the OSI Director, that's likely to create all kinds of problems for us."

"Understood, Boss," Tony said. Then stopping he asked, "Is Rule 44 still a factor?"

Gibbs frowned slightly and said, "Two children are missing. All I know is their names are Harper and Haven, so yeah, it's still in play."

Half an hour later, Tim returned looking extremely worried. "What is it McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"Boss, I don't like this. I can't tell you much more than what we already know. I can tell you that they were attacked by a large force of men who seemed to be after something, that they didn't get. Their youngest child, their biological one was staying with her grandparents when the attack occurred. Harper and Haven were here. They're not here now. Kate, uh... Agent Goldman said that she couldn't find any sign of them."

"And you're willing to take her on her word?" Tony demanded. "Rule 3 and your own Rule 70."

Tim looked shocked for a moment and then his mouth formed a determined hard line. "Right. Don't believe what you're told. Double check, and keep digging until you hit bottom."

Gibbs raised and eyebrow and watched as Tim started to work, studying the walls carefully. At one point he put a finger in one of the scorched holes in the living room and seemed to think. Gibbs started to ask what he was doing, but decided to give the man his head to work out what he was thinking himself.

It was at this point that Palmer and Ducky appeared. Ducky looked up at him and said, "I'm told we'll not be getting Major Austin's body, Jethro."

"For now, Ducky," he replied. "For now. Work with what you've got."

Ducky gave him a disbelieving look and went to work while Gibbs went out to talk to the neighbors. They turned out to quite be helpful. The Austins were the perfect neighbors, minding their own business, keeping their place up, and there seldom being anything out of the ordinary other than frequent trips by the Major on various deployments. The brawl in the house had been quite noisy and several of the attackers had been hurled through windows, and even one wall. The crashing sounds were heard all the way to the end of the street, but when the gunfire started, everyone went inside, many of them retreating to safe-rooms.

"Gibbs!" Bishop yelled from the door. "Please come in here." Her tone was clear that she wanted him close and didn't want to alert anyone who might be within hearing distance that she may have found something.

Thanking the witnesses for their time and information, he gave each of them his card, excused himself and went inside. Stepping through the door, he closed it and said, "Let me guess, McGee found a safe-room."

"How'd you know?" Tony asked.

"Several of the neighbors have them and went to them when the shooting started," he replied.

Then looking over at Tim he asked, "What do you have?"

McGee looked at the staircase and said, "This area seems to be completely closed off. It's wasted space."

"Or it's a safe room," Gibbs said.

"Exactly," McGee told him as he searched the wall for some kind of entrance. "I wonder why Goldman wasn't able to find the entrance?"

"Can you find it?" Dinozzo asked.

Tim shook his head and said, "No. But I don't have Goldman's... uh advantages."

"What about the clues your friend sent you?" Bishop asked.

"Hmmm..." McGee said taking out his cell phone. "I know the answers, they're easy, but I have to find a way to input them to get inside."

"Let me see," Bishop said looking at the phone.

Tim handed it to her and she looked at them. "All of these could be answered with a number, except the first one and maybe the last one."

"Okay, what are they?" Dinozzo asked.

Tim took the phone back and said, "I'm surprised you don't get the first one, Tony. You're the film buff. Of course it's not a film, but a television series."

"Just spit it out McGeek," Dinozzo said.

"You once lost your heart on a world where leaves sing and dreams find life. Talos Four" McGee told him. It's classic Star Trek, a program that both Gillian and I loved.

"Figures," DiNozza said as a door sized panel at the side of the stairs slid down to reveal a heavy metal door with a thumb print and a key pad.

"Talk about safe-rooms," Palmer said.

"Well, McGee what are you waiting for? You're the one with the answers to the questions."

McGee nodded and touched his thumb to the panel and then hit a series of numbers. The thumbprint turned green and there was the sounds of gears turning. Gibbs noted that the door that slid down was a good six inches thick of solid metal. Inside was an elevator size box made of black glass and steel with what looked like a camera and an intercom on it. Tim stepped in and touched a stud and part of the wall flared to life as a monitor. "Harper, Haven, are you in there?"

"Uncle Tim?" a young voice came over the intercom as a picture formed of two raven-haired children with the same shoulder length hair cut. Tim reached up an touched the pad and said, "It's me, Harper."

The children looked at each other and then nodded toward Gibbs and the rest of the team behind Tim. One asked, "Who are they?"

"They're my co-workers. We're here to help."

"They killed mom and dad," one of the children said sadly, nearly in tears again. Harper wanted to help, but Mom made us get in here. They were nio..." the other child punched him or her in the arm and he or she blushed quickly and shut up. "They were like dad."

"Can you come up or do I need to come down and get you?" Tim asked.

"Step back and we'll come up," the one who punched the other said.

McGee stepped back out of the box and the door closed. "Why do I get the feeling I just stepped into the Twilight Zone?" DiNozzo asked.

"Ya think?" Gibbs asked him. "What's all this about, McGee?"

The other agent sighed and said, "How do you feel about fighting the head of OSI for me?"

"I don't quite follow?" Gibbs answered shifting his weight.

"Harper and Haven are my godchildren. They're adopted, and I was named their guardian should anything happen to their parents. Bethany is... was their natural born daughter, and unless Michael and Gillian changed their wills, their custody goes to me, not to Director Austin. That's likely to cause us problems with the OSI. Harper and Haven know things that the OSI rather not NCIS, the FBI, Homeland Security or just about anybody else know."

"Such as this nio- something?" Tony asked.

"Niosynthetics," Ellie said. "It's a very advanced theory of cybernetics."

"You mean like Arnold in Terminator?" DiNozzo asked.

"Something like that," McGee said.

Before anyone else could say anything the whirring of the elevator cut them off. A few seconds later, two teary-eyed children flung themselves crying into Tim's arms.

The man looked embarrassed as he stroked the backs of their raven heads. Gibbs could not for the life of him determine if either one was male or female. He could almost sense that the two were communicating with Tim on the level of a close relative. It was an intimate family moment that for some reason left Gibbs both remembering Kelly and feeling embarrassed at witnessing his friend being this vulnerable. He could tell that Tim was holding back the hurt he felt over losing his friends.

Finally, they let go of him, and turned to look at the rest of them with deep blue eyes. Tim cleared his throat and Gibbs could hear the pain in his team member's voice. He touched each of the children and said, "This is Harper and Haven Austin, my godchildren. Harper, Haven, this is Special Agents Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Elanor Bishop, and Anthony DiNozzo, also Doctors Donald Mallard and James Palmer."

"Hello," Gibbs said quietly.

"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," Ducky told them.

Gibbs looked at McGee and said, "Take my car and take them to Bethesda to get checked out, and then to the Yard. I'll ride back with Ellie."

"Got it, Boss," McGee said. Gibbs watched both him, and the children. There was something about all three of their reactions that were off to Gibbs. McGee, he could understand, he was being professional, putting his emotions aside. But the children, they were acting strangely, more as if they were out for revenge than as helpless children. When he looked into their eyes, he saw a cold anger that haunted him to this day. He'd seen it in his own eyes when he was hunting down Hernandez. Those children believed they could handle the people responsible for killing their parents. They were hurting, yes, but more importantly, they were angry. That was a dangerous combination in kids who couldn't be more than twelve or thirteen."

As they were leaving, Dinozzo called out, "McGee, you might want to call Delilah. Let her know."

McGee stopped but didn't turn around. He just nodded and took the children by the shoulder and guided them toward Gibbs' car.


	2. Chapter 2 Read In

CHAPTER 2

Former Astronaut, retired, Colonel in the Air Force, and now Director of the Office of Scientific Intelligence, Steve Austin scowled at his office in general. Since they lost Oscar at the Conrad Gala two years ago, Steve was the only person that the DoD felt was capable of stepping in to fill the role as head of the agency. He'd agreed on one condition, that the DoD kept the politicians as far away from the OSI as possible, and any communication from the White House come through the DoD. He was not going to play politics with his agents lives, especially with an administration that was hostile to law enforcement, and intelligence assets.

His intercom buzzed and when he hit it, his Secretary, Eve said, "Mister Austin, Jim Castillian and your wife are here to see you."

"Send them in," Steve said as he got up from his desk.

Jim had risen through the ranks rather quickly after the incident with Alan Devlin. Just as Steve had become Oscar's go-to-man, Jim was now his. The irony was that Steve was bionic and Jim wasn't.

As both visitors entered, he looked at Jaime and asked, "How's Bethany?"

"As well as any six year old can be in this situation," his blonde wife told him. "Kate and Max are with her." Turning her back to him for a second, in then back around she said, "I just feel so helpless. Harper and Haven are out there somewhere and nobody knows what has happened to them."

"Good news on that front, Colonel," Jim said. Jim never got past the stage of referring to him as either Colonel Austin, or Steve depending on whether the situation was professional or personal.

"Go ahead," Jaime demanded.

"There was a safe room in the bottom of the stairwell. Evidently Gillian had her people install it and it was shielded from bionic and niosynthetic detection. The children were in it. Timothy McGee had the pass code to get in. As soon as he took the children out of the house, the computers down there did a data dump into the OSI central computer."

"So the children are safe?" Jaime asked, her voice reflecting his own sense of relief.

"For now. McGee was supposed to take him to Bethesda to get checked out, but they suggested Doctor York instead. McGee's not stupid, he knows that there's something special about Harper and Haven, I wouldn't doubt that he knows exactly what they are. He's not about to expose them to a doctor without clearance."

Steve nodded and said, "Again, Oscar's decision to let him go to NCIS seems to be the right one. I have to agree. Strong arming agents never works that well." He looked up and asked, "What did Doctor York say?"

"Physically, the children are fine. However, psychologically they're wounded. They felt their parents die, and they felt their mother being tortured. They are out for blood, and probably the only thing keeping them from heading out now to try and find who sent the killers is McGee."

Steve nodded and said, "I want you to get Doctor Audrey Moss to talk to them. If anyone can help them cope, she can."

"Do you plan on keeping every one you ever worked with on the payroll, Steve?" Jaime asked.

Steve smiled and said, "Just the good ones. You don't waste good."

"So what now?" Castillian asked pulling his phone from his pocket and looking at it.

"Jim, I want you to contact Apploy and find out if this is more renegade activity. Inform them about Gillian's death, send my condolences and explain the situation. Maybe they can give us some more information on Harper and Haven's background. We're going to have to handle this as carefully as possible. I don't want the OSI to suddenly get exposed, and I sure as hell don't want to lose my grandchildren."

"How are you holding up, Steve?" Jim asked.

He sighed and said, "They killed my son and daughter-in-law, they tried to kidnap my grandchildren. I want to go out and bust heads until I get to the bottom of it, but I'm chained to this desk."

"I could..." Jaime said.

Steve shook his head and said, "No. Someone has to stay with Bethany. I'm going to need Kate in the field."

"I hate to add bad news," Jim said as he looked up from the screen of the device. "But the autopsy on Michael just came in. The damage to both his human and bionic components indicate someone with incredible strength, either bionic or niosynthetic."

"And we just turned over six of their bodies to NCIS," Steve said.

"Exactly. Maybe you should pay Director Vance a visit. Whether we like it or not, Doctor Mallard and his assistant have just become either a liability, or Security Level Six asset," Jim said. "As for me, I'm heading to California. Just hope your old friend is willing to listen to me and not rip me in half."

"Tell him Steve and Jaime sent you. It's about Gillian," Jaime said. "He'll take you to Apploy." Jim nodded and left the room.

"And when are you going to visit Director Vance?" Jaime asked.

"Right now," he said. "You go back and send Kate over."

"Okay. Why do you want her?" Jaime asked.

"Because she's worked closer with McGee than any of the rest of us. She was the one he rewrote the programming for her bionics first. They have the longest history together."

"You're not playing fair, Steve," Jaime said. "But in this case I agree."

"What have you got Ducky?" Gibbs said as he and his team stepped into autopsy.

The older man looked up and said, "Jethro, you and Timothy stay. The rest of you, must leave autopsy."

"Ducky?" Gibbs asked.

"Just do it, Jethro. I don't want to put any more people's jobs in the sack than necessary."

Gibbs could see the concern in the ME's eyes and looked over at Palmer who had a look of awe on his face underscored by worry. Turning to DiNozzo and Bishop, he said, "You two, I want a run down on who these people are. You tell me that you can't find any ID, and their fingerprints aren't in any database. Keep digging."

"Got it, Boss," Tony said as he grabbed Bishop by the arm and headed out of autopsy.

When the door closed, Ducky went over and locked it. Then he did something, that surprised Gibbs. He went over and disconnected the monitor to Abby's computer, and sealed the room from outside contact. "What's this about Ducky?" Gibbs asked.

"Ask Timothy," Ducky replied.

Tim sighed and said, "Let me guess, you found cybernetic implants in the attackers."

"That's part of it," Ducky said. "I also found something interesting in your friend Lieutenant Commander Austin."

The look of surprise on Tim's face was genuine. "What Ducky?"

"Just how far did Doctor Wells get with his cybernetic research?" Ducky demanded.

Tim looked nervously at Gibbs and then at one of the bodies on the table. "I don't think I really have to answer that question, Ducky."

Ducky shook his head and looked to Jethro and said, "If I tell you what I found in the bodies, I may be putting your life into danger, Jethro."

"What are you talking about, Ducky?" Gibbs demanded.

Finally, coming to some kind of conclusion, Tim sighed and said, "I can't actually read you in. What I can tell you would automatically raise your security clearance over Vance's."

"You mean to tell me that you have a security clearance higher that the Director of NCIS?" Gibbs asked. "How?"

Tim sighed and said, "When I was at Johns Hopkins and then at MIT, I worked with Gillian. At the time her last name was Madria, she had just met Michael Austin. Because of the connections to my father, I was granted a security rating for the OSI and was privileged to work with Doctor Rudy Wells on his Project Cyborg." He looked at all three of them again and asked, "Are you sure you want to hear about this?"

"Spit it out McGee," Gibbs said.

McGee nodded but before he could continue, the door to autopsy slid open and Director Vance stepped in with a man who looked to be in his late fifties or early sixties. Behind them were DiNozzo and Bishop. "Stop whatever you were talking about McGee," Vance said

McGee turned to face the two men and said, "Yes sir."

Vance looked at the people gathered in the room and said, "I note that Miss Scuioto isn't here. How much does she know Ducky?"

"She knows about the blood enzymes in LCDR Austin's body, and as she called it, her hinky genetic profile," Ducky replied.

"Well get her down here," the other man said. "We might as well deal with all of this at once."

"Actually, I don't think Abby would be a good person to read into this, Sir." McGee piped up.

"Why not?" Vance asked.

"Sir, I have the utmost respect for Abby as a scientist and as a researcher, and as a person, but I don't think I would burden her with this."

"She's going to dig anyway, McGee," Vance said.

"Yes sir. And that's something we need to redirect. The problem is that Abby's heart is too big. She'll find out about this project and start wondering why it hasn't been made available to the general public. Eventually her conscience would get the better of her. I would rather not put her into that kind of moral dilemma, Sir."

"McGee!" DiNozzo protested. "Don't you think she should make that decision?"

"Once she knows, the decision has already been made for her," Bishop told him.

"Okay, McGee, we'll play your hand for now," Gibbs cut off the conversation. "I think I understand what you might mean." McGee was showing a level of maturity and professionalism that while it didn't surprise Gibbs, he found it a bit unusual in this situation. He was very much in control of himself.

Vance and the other man exchanged glances. The other man turned to look at McGee and said, "I'm sorry you're caught in the middle of this Agent McGee, but both my son and Gillian insisted that you be Harper's and Haven's guardian if something should happen to them. I can't say that I'm happy with turning over my grandchildren to someone else, but I will honor my son's wishes. That being said, I am here to relieve you of an onerous duty that could get you and your team in trouble. Director Vance and I have discussed this. What we have to say is not to leave this room. It's not for the ears of the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Chiefs, or for anybody in the DoD not already in the loop—and that's very few people—and it's damn for sure not to go to Homeland Security or that idiot in the White House."

"We all serve at the President's pleasure," Vance protested.

" _You_ serve at the pleasure of the President, Director Vance. OSI is a different animal altogether. That idiot in the White House doesn't qualify for janitorial clearance at the OSI, let alone the one you're about to be upgraded to. I won't have my agents and their families' lives be put in danger for political gains, and my people know how to make that stick."

"The President would never..."

"Tell that to SEAL Team Six's families," the man said.

Vance did not look happy at that comment, but sighed. "This is Director Austin of the OSI."

"Michael's father," Tim said. "I'm sorry for your loss, Sir."

"Thank you McGee," the man said. Gibbs noted the change in attitude the older man had when he addressed Tim, almost fatherly. "And I recognize that you've had a loss as well. We all have. Jaime sends her best, by the way."

Tim nodded and asked, "Have you stopped using her to train new agents?"

Austin smiled at some inside joke between the two of them. "There haven't been any new agents like you helped. The procedure is too expensive. Six million just won't go as far as it used to. With Michael gone, that leaves only three human agents left."

"Human?" Gibbs asked.

"The procedure was originally tested on a German Shepherd by the name of Max. The enzymes that are used as an interface agent have anti-agathic side-effects. Max is the only 50 year old dog alive."

"Okay, what are we talking about?" DiNozzo asked.

"In the early nineteen seventies, Doctor Rudy Wells developed a procedure to replace damaged human limbs with upgraded cybernetic ones that were for the most part indistinguishable from those replaced. The agents that were endowed in such a way were usually accident victims, or those with some kind of muscular degenerative disease. They all worked for the OSI and did a lot of good in the world."

"Cyborgs?" Bishop asked.

"That was the name of the project, Project Cyborg," Director Austin told them. My son was one of those agents."

"And McGee is involved in this how?" DiNozzo demanded.

"While an undergraduate and a graduate student, he worked with Doctor Wells on upgrading the computer code for those bionics systems. He was chosen because of his connections to Captain McGee. That's why he has an OSI Security Rating of Seven. Yours just became a Six. The assailants that attacked my son's home were evidently illegal, applications of that technology by forces we have yet to identify."

"And how are these cybernetics or bionics different from niosynthetics?" Bishop asked.

"Bionics were first through fourth generations. For the most part they are a complete replacement of the limb or organ, but they add a significant weight to the individual. Usually an extra fifty to sixty pounds depending on the individual and the limb or organ. Fifth generation bionics deal with microsurgery to physically alter and strengthen already existing limbs, cells, bones, and tissue. They are a significant upgrade from fourth generation bionics. Niosynthetics takes that to a whole new level, requiring a power source that is not normally available. Up until today, I only knew of one niosynthetic individual on the planet."

"You say that as if you expected there to be life on other planets," DiNozzo said.

The Director simply raised an eyebrow and continued. "However, the autopsy that came back on Michael suggested that the damage done to his body was done by someone with bionic or niosynthetic augmentation."

"And that would explain the implants I found throughout our assailants bodies," Ducky replied.

"Exactly, Doctor Mallard," Director Austin said.

Ducky seemed to stop for a moment and think. Finally, he said, "Exactly what do you want us to do, Director Austin? Clearly we are out of our depth here. From the damage I've seen done to these bodies, there is little a non-enhanced agent could do to harm them."

Director Austin looked at the team and said, "Your MCRT has the highest success rate of any team in any of the intelligence agencies in the US. I don't want you to engage them. I want you to help me find out who they are, what they want, and where they are. I have no problems with giving your team the credit, but my team will take them out."

"Not bring them in?" Director Vance asked.

McGee spoke up and said, "Director Vance, these are not people you could put in any jail. If their bionics were first through fourth generation, they could be tuned down to something that can be handled by a normal jail, but their knowledge of bionics makes them a threat to national security. If they are niosynthetic, that's a different story. There's no tuning them down, and there's no removing them. It's an unfortunate fact, but it is the fact of the matter. This will not be a capture and take to trial mission."

"Listen to you, McDouble Oh Seven," DiNozzo said snarkily.

Austin fixed him with his right eye before returning to Vance and saying, "I would appreciate it if you would turn the body of my daughter-in-law over to the OSI so it can be returned to her family. Also, when you are finished examining them, turn over all the bodies of the assailants. Complete."

"Exactly where is her family?" Ducky asked. "Those enzymes and that genetic profile was, as Abigail described, hinky."

"They live in Northern California," he replied.

"That's a family, I think I would very much like to meet," Ducky said.

"Not all of them Doctor Mallard," the Director said unconsciously rubbing one arm. "Trust me, not all of them."

"I'm sure there is a story behind that, but I'm not going to pry, Director," Ducky said.

"So you want us to hunt them down for you, so you can assassinate them?" Director Vance asked incredulously. "That's not how NCIS works." He then gave Gibbs a hard look that contained an unspoken: _usually_.

"If that's the way you want it, Director Vance," Austin said turning toward the door. Without turning around he said, "McGee, I trust we won't be having any difficulties with visitation."

"Not at all, Director Austin. Anytime," McGee replied.

Austin nodded his head and then turned to leave the room. "Think about what I said, what McGee has told you. And remember, what you learned here does not leave this room. Period."

When the man was gone, DiNozzo asked, "Is that official? I mean that's not the usual way we are read into a program."

Vance looked at him and said. "It's official. You understand, he understands, I understand. This conversation did not happen. You have no knowledge of bionics, cybernetics, or niosynthetics. Now find those assailants, find out why they attacked LCDR Austin, and what they want with those children. I also want to know what's so special about those children," Vance told him.

McGee looked at Vance and said, "I can follow everyone of those orders except the last one, Director."

"And why not McGee?" he demanded.

"Would you turn over your children's medical files?"

Vance considered what McGee had said, and stuck a toothpick in the side of his mouth. "Understood, McGee." He then turned and left saying, "Find them."


	3. Chapter 3: Children's Questions

CHAPTER 3

"I'll be home when I can, Jim," Kate said into the air of the car. "We've accounted for all the kids, and they're safe. But I royally screwed up at the house, and now some agents at the NCIS have had to be read in to the program. It was a rookie mistake I shouldn't have made."

"What's done is done, Kate," Jim Goldman, her husband told her. It's not every day you're investigating the death of someone you, …we all... care about. That has to put you off your game," he replied. "Should I order Chinese?"

"No. If I haven't called by eight o'clock, that means I'll be late getting home. Go ahead and order something for yourself. I'll grab something to eat out. I want these bastards, Jim. I want them bad."

"Just be careful, Kate," he told her.

"I always am," she replied. "Love you, Jim."

"Love you too, Katydid," he used his pet name for her. She touched the button on the steering wheel to end the call as she pulled into the Navy Yard. _Well, we wanted Tim McGee in the OSI, this just puts us one step_ closer, she thought to herself grimly. _Even if the circumstances do suck._ With a smile, she noted Audrey Moss' car was already in guest parking. If NCIS understood what kind of security breach, Audrey or even the twins offered, they wouldn't let any of them within a hundred miles of DC. Oscar Goldman had never really been comfortable with ESPionage, but Steve had embraced it. Then again, he'd worked with Audrey since she was a teenager. When she'd grown up, she'd worked with Jaime as a counselor to OSI agents, and had even had a few missions in the field of her own. Now she worked for the agency in a triple role as counselor, psychiatrist, and PSIchiatrist. She was going to need all three of those professions for this particular interview.

Nodding to the older woman as the two entered the NCIS building, she smiled and said, "I was wondering how long it would take Steve to ask you in on this."

She grinned and said, "Steve is covering all his bases, like he always does. Of course I think I'm going to pull a few regs on him about counseling after this."

"He's hiding his pain behind his work?" Kate asked.

"You know I can't discuss that with you," she told her.

"Which I note is not a denial," Kate replied.

"Nor an affirmation," Audrey told her as the two checked in at the main desk, were issued visitor passes, and were escorted down to the bullpen where the agents worked. As she looked around, a tall handsome man came up to them and asked, "Can I help you ladies?"

Kate smiled and turned on the charm. "I'm Agent Goldman and this is Doctor Moss from the OSI. We are here to talk to the Austin twins."

"I'm Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. I'm not sure how McGee is going to feel about that."

"Agent McGee will understand," Kate told him. "Would you tell him that Kate and Doctor Moss are here to see him and the twins."

"Okay," he said. "It's your funeral. McGee has suddenly gone papa bear on those kids."

"Agent DiNozzo, male bears kill cubs," Audrey said with a smile. "I don't think that fits Timothy McGee."

DiNozzo just shrugged and said, "McGee is not your average papa bear either. Just ask his sister."

Kate nodded. She was the first of Oscar Goldman's bionic agents to have met McGee when he started updating the interface between their brains and the onboard computers that controlled them. "Where are they?"

"McGee, and the children are with Gibbs in the conference room. They're trying to hold up, but to be honest, something in their eyes scares the hell out of me, Agent Goldman. You got any idea why?" Agent DiNozzo asked.

"Some," she said as she looked to Moss. Finally when DiNozzo wasn't forthcoming, she asked, "And the conference room is where?"

"I'll take you," DiNozzo said. "Follow me."

A few moments later they were entering a large office that was sparsely decorated with Navy themed paraphernalia and paintings, and a large table with several semi-comfortable chairs. The twins were sitting next to each other at the table, a juice box in front of them, and McGee was next to Harper. Gibbs was across the table.

Every eye turned to face them as they entered. "Boss, this is Doctor Moss, and you've met Agent Goldman from the OSI. They want to sit in on this."

Gibbs looked up at the two of them. Kate knew the man wasn't happy with her, but he was at least being professional. She actually respected Gibbs' record, and wished she'd been able to work with him under better circumstances. He nodded over to her and looked at Audrey and asked, "Doctor of what?"

"Psychiatry, Agent Gibbs," Audrey said with her usual unfazeable aplomb.

He nodded and looked over at the children who obviously recognized her. "Hello, Mrs. Goldman. Have you caught them yet?" Harper asked, a hardness in the child's voice she didn't like.

"No, Harper, but we're working on it. Your grandfather has sent Jim Castillian to speak to your mother's family."

The twins looked at each other and Haven said, "Thank you."

"Can you tell us anything about the men who attacked you?" Gibbs' asked.

Haven sighed and said, "You've been told about bionics and nyosynthetics."

"How did you know that?" Gibbs asked.

Harper frowned and said, "Because we're talking to you and not Kate or Grandmother. They were nyosynthetic."

"Harper, you understand the difference between bionics and nyosynthetics?" Kate asked.

"Completely, Mrs. Goldman. We know the exact difference. Haven said they were nyosynthetic, so they're nyosynthetic."

Kate just nodded and looked over at Doctor Moss. The other woman simply shrugged. There was a faint look of surprise around her eyes. "That's something that Jim needs to know before he gets there."

"Understood," Doctor Moss said.

"Okay, how many men were there?" Gibbs asked.

"Nine, sir," Haven said.

"Can you describe them?" Gibbs asked softly.

"I can do better than that if you will let me have my tablet back." Haven said.

"Your tablet?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes sir," the child said. "Agent Bishop took it to someone named Abby to look at it. There's a program on it that I can use to generate an image of them."

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said. "Go get that tablet from Abby."

"On it, Boss," DiNozzo said leaving the room.

Then turning back to the kids, he said, "I know this might be hard for you, but if I show you pictures of the men who were still at your house when we got there, could you maybe identify them?"

"I can always try, Agent Gibbs. I didn't recognize any of them, when they burst in, and everything happened so fast, but we made it a point to remember as many faces as we could."

"Why would you do that?" Doctor Moss asked.

"Because Dad taught us to notice things, to be aware of our surroundings, and to remember people's faces."

"That's why Haven learned to use that program. Neither one of us are very good at drawing," Harper said.

"Okay," Gibbs said leaning back in his chair. "These pictures may be a little hard to look at. They're not alive."

Again, Harper and Haven looked at each other. Finally Harper turned around and said, "We understand. We'll do what we can to help you so Kate can find them for us."

Gibbs looked surprised. "You trust Agent Goldman?" he asked.

The twins shrugged and Harper said, "We've known her most of our lives, Agent Gibbs. We know what she can do."

"Which is?" Gibbs asked.

Again Harper shrugged and said, "A whole lot more than you can."

Gibbs smiled and said, "I'm glad you've got someone you can trust. And I hope Agent Goldman doesn't lose that. Now if you would look at these pictures, you'll have some idea of who you don't have to describe to us," Gibbs said.

"Agent Gibbs, do you think it's a good idea to show eleven year old children pictures of dead men?" Doctor Moss asked.

"We'll be twelve next month," Haven challenged her.

"Okay, almost twelve year olds?" Moss said with a smile.

"We don't mind, Doctor Moss. If it'll help Kate catch them, we'll go down and look at their bodies, if you want."

"Absolutely not!" Tim said.

Both of them turned to him. There seemed to be something flying back and forth between the three of them, some unspoken communication. "You're going to have nightmares enough as it is," Tim finally said. "I don't want to add to that. Your grandmother would have my hide if I did that."

Harper nodded, frowned and said, "Let me see your pictures, Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs looked over at Moss and then at Kate. Moss shrugged and Kate nodded. "At this point it can't hurt. I would like a copy of those photos for Director Austin, please," she said.

"I'll have Bishop send them over," Gibbs replied.

"Thank you, Agent Gibbs," Kate told him.

"Now take your time with these, and if you need to look away, that's fine. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable." Gibbs seemed to have a natural empathy for children.

Harper nodded and looked at Haven who nodded back before the twin who'd seemed to be their spokesperson said, "Let us see them."

Kate watched the two closely as they studied each photograph. She got the feeling that they were committing the images to memory. After about ten minutes of study where the room was silent of anything other than the sounds of photos being passed back and forth, DiNozzo came in carrying the tablet. "Here you go boss." He handed the tablet in a sealed plastic bag to Gibbs who signed the seal, and then took it out and handed it to Haven.

Haven's blue eyes played over the screen for several moments as the preteen studied it. Hitting several buttons on the screen in rapid succession Kate watched it flare to life. The child's fingers moved with an elegance and speed that was quite impressive as a program booted up and a blank face appeared. Then a menu expanded up and Haven began to make adjustments. In less than five minutes, an image of a man in his early forties with black hair and eyes took form. He was about five ten and about a hundred eighty pounds. When the image was complete, Haven saved it and looked at Gibbs and asked, "I sent this to Uncle Tim's email address. Is that okay?"

Gibbs nodded, any surprise he might have at Haven knowing Tim's email address did not show on his face. "Can you do the other two as quickly?"

"Yes sir," Haven replied and started to work on another picture. When the other two were finished, the child looked over at Kate and said, "I sent copies to Grandpa and Grandma as well."

"What is that program you're using?" Gibbs asked.

"It's free on the internet," Haven said. "I like to use it for stories that Harper and I make up."

"Can I see it?" Tim asked holding out his hand. Haven handed him the tablet. He turned it over in his hands once, shrugged and then looked at the program. He raised an eyebrow and looked at the child, "This is the same program that they use for the costumes for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, isn't it?"

Haven nodded and said, "Yes, sir."

Tim chuckled and handed the tablet back to his ward and looked to Gibbs and said, "Nothing special about the program, Boss. Like Haven said, it's free to download on the internet. I've never seen it used by a eleven year old that well...,"

"We're nearly twelve," Harper corrected him.

Tim smiled and said, "By a nearly twelve year old, then. Haven seems to be quite talented." Then looking at the child, he said, "I'd like to see some of your stories sometime. Haven frowned and nodded as Tim pulled out his phone and pulled up the emails. Then with a couple of quick commands the printer on the other side of the room spat out six photos.

Kate went over and pulled the photos from the printer. She couldn't tell the difference between what Haven had generated on the computer from a real photo. She was impressed.

Harper looked over at Agent Gibbs and then to McGee. "Can Haven please keep the tablet? Working on the stories is calming, for the both of us.."

"Where was the tablet?" Gibbs asked.

"In the safe room with the twins. It got bagged and tagged as a matter of procedure," DiNozzo said. It wasn't in the area of the..." he looked nervously over at the twins and then said, "...action."

Gibbs nodded and smiled, "I don't see why not. Just make a note of it in the log file."

"Got it, Boss," DiNozzo said leaving the room.

"Can I ask a question?" Harper asked.

"Sure," Tim replied.

"There are still at least three assassins out there. We know they were after us when they broke in. That's why they hurt Mom. They wanted the pass code to get into the safe room. Are we going to have to go into hiding?"

Kate looked at Tim and then back at the kids. "I don't think they're going to be safe at your apartment Tim," she said.

Tim nodded and said, "I agree. And I don't think an NCIS safe-house is likely to keep them out either." He sighed frustrated and leaned back in his chair. "I can't protect them, NCIS can't protect them."

Gibbs watched his agent. Kate could see the frustration in the lead agent's eyes too. He knew that his agent was hurting and was frustrated as well, and there was nothing they could do about it. Finally Harper spoke up. "We could stay with Grandma."

Kate looked at Tim and he looked back at her, and said, "They already killed one agent with third generation bionics. I'm not sure how much Jaime's experience would make up for the technological advantage that the nyosynthetic agents would have." He looked over at Kate and said, "Or even fourth generation bionics."

Kate smiled and said, "You forget, Jaime's had experience dealing with nyosynthetic agents."

"Mrs. Austin must be in her seventies by now," Gibbs protested.

"Like Director Austin said, the serum that allows for the interface has some anti-agathic side-effects. She's much more fit than any forty year old."

Gibbs finally looked up at Audrey and asked, "Are you bionic too, Doctor Moss?"

"Me?" Audrey asked. "Heaven's no. I'm just a psychiatrist and a counselor."

Gibbs nodded and looked back to Timothy. "They're your responsibility McGee."

"Uncle Timothy could stay at Grandma's place too. I'm sure she wouldn't mind." Harper said quickly.

"Actually, I'm sure Mrs. Austin would be happy to have Tim around the house," Kate said.

Gibbs looked dubious, but finally nodded and said. "Okay, but I want to know why they're after these kids."

"Isn't it obvious?" Moss asked.

Gibbs gave her a questioning look and asked, "What's obvious?"

"Hold these kids hostage, and you've got the Director of the OSI by the short-hairs. That's something a lot of people would like to be able to do."

Gibbs nodded and said, "Yeah, that makes sense."

"But your gut tells you there's something more," Audrey told him.

Looking surprised, he said, "Something like that."

"Good, Agent Gibbs," she said. "Follow that. Find out what it is, and maybe we can find these killers and take them down." She looked over at the twins and said, "I don't like the idea of someone trying to hurt children."

Six hours later...

"Alright Tony, spit it out. What's going on here. We've got spooks to give Trent Kort nightmares. You know something and you're not telling me."

"Yes, I do, Abby, and no I'm not," he replied.

"Abby's Rule Number 1, "Don't Lie to Abby."," she told him menacingly.

Tony shook his head, held up his hands and said, "I'm not lying to you Abby. I'm simply not telling you everything."

"And he's not going to tell you anything," Director Vance's voice came from the direction of the door.

"But Director Vance, I can't do my job if I don't know everything," she protested, her voice just an octave off from a whine.

"You know what we can tell you, Ms. Sciuto. Now what can you tell us."

"About what specifically, sir?" she asked. "There's a lot of information that is just plain hinky."

"Such as?" Vance asked.

"To start with, Lieutenant Commander Austin's blood sample doesn't match any known blood type."

"What do you mean it doesn't match any known blood type?" Tony asked intrigued. The way Director Austin had looked at him when he made the comment about life from other planets still haunted him.

"I mean the Rh factor doesn't match any type we know. It's completely new, and some of the hormones in it are unique."

Vance nodded as he chewed the end of a toothpick and said, "What about the crime scene?"

"Director, the force needed to impale a Duncan Pfyfe sofa that far through latboard and horsehair plaster walls, would take ten men moving at a speed of nearly sixty miles an hour. The force to snap the four by four at the core of that support column would have smashed the front end of a car all to pieces. If I didn't know it was in the realm of fantasy, I'd say it looks like Spider-Man and Doc Oc fought in that house. And the technology we found in the safe-room and that tablet, is not off the shelf stuff."

"Explain," Vance asked. "The technology part."

"Well, the computers themselves were melted down. Evidently two minutes after the doors opened up top, a white phosphorous charge melted down the hardware. But the few pieces of circuitry we found doesn't match anything like is available on the market. That tablet Bishop sent down doesn't match any in the stores either. I was just getting ready to try and take it apart when Tony came and got it."

"Where's the tablet now?" Vance asked Tony.

"Gibbs gave it back to the kid. It was ..." he stopped a minute and realized that he still had no idea what sex either of those kids were. "It belonged to one of the twins." He looked at Vance and asked, "Do you know if they're boys or girls?"

Vance shrugged and said, "I haven't met them."

"He did what?!" Abby demanded. "That tablet was part of an ongoing investigation! I _need_ to take that thing apart to find out what's on it."

"No you don't, Abs," Gibbs said entering the room with a folder in his hand. "It wasn't in the area of the fight, and it obviously belonged to the kid." Opening the folder, he handed her several photographs. Try running these through facial recognition."

She looked down at them and then back up at Gibbs. "Where'd you get these?"

"Haven used a program on the tablet to generate it," he said. "McGee says the program is commercial and free to anyone who wanted to download it."

Tony watched as she stared at the photos for a second. "If it's the one I'm thinking about, this was done by a professional level movie CGI artist," she said.

"Sat there and watched the kid generate it myself," Gibbs said.

Abby nodded, still staring at the photos as she took them over and scanned them into the computer. "I don't like this, Gibbs. I don't like being kept out of the loop," she complained.

"Just do what you have to, Abs. There are still people out there trying to kill those kids. I want to make sure that doesn't happen," Gibbs told her.

"I'd still like to get a look at that tablet," Abs grumbled.

"Just do what you can," Gibbs replied. Then turning to DiNozzo he asked, "Any luck with finding out anything on the bodies downstairs?"

"Bishop got a hit off a couple of ATMs in the downtown area that had been hacked but that was all."

"Hacked?" Gibbs asked. "How?"

"You have to see it," Tony said. "Come up to the squad room and check it out."

Tony watched as Abby shot him a hard look at being left out of the loop, but said nothing else. He just shrugged and said, "Sorry Abs."

As they were leaving, he heard Vance say, "Ms. Sciuto, let's have a talk."

As they elevator started on its upward journey, Tony came to a conclusion and reached over and hit the stop button on the elevator. Gibbs gave him a questioning look but waited for him to begin. Finally, he sighed and asked, "I have a question Boss, and I'm not sure I like asking it."

"Spit it out DiNozzo," he said.

"Are we still working as a team here, Boss?" Tony asked.

"What do you mean DiNozzo?" he asked.

"I mean McGee. He's suddenly got ties to the OSI we didn't know about. I mean is he still part of the team?"

"Has he done anything that makes you think differently? Gibbs demanded.

"He told Vance that he wouldn't tell him anything special about those kids. I mean Boss, I don't even know if they're male or female."

Gibbs nodded and said, "He's protecting the children that are now his responsibility. I can't blame him. His question to Vance was perfectly valid. We're not trying to break the OSI here, we're trying to find out who murdered a Navy and an Air Force Officer and where they are. Those are kids up there, and they're not for us to experiment on, or poke and prod unless there's a medical issue." He sighed and in a very uncharacteristically fashion said, "I understand where you're coming from DiNozzo, but for now, I agree with Tim. Those kids have been through enough, they don't need to be poked and prodded unless it's germane to the case."

Tony sighed in relief. He was starting to worry, and McGee was acting very un-McGee like and it set him off his game. "Just checking, Boss," he said as he reached over and hit the on switch on the elevator.

When the door opened, they walked over to where Ellie was staring at a line of code on her computer. "What have you got Bishop?" he asked.

"First the video," Bishop said. "If you don't mind, it's probably not a good idea to put it on the plasma."

Gibbs nodded and went over to her desk and looked at the computer. When he and Tony were both behind her, she said, "When the photos of those men came through I ran them through facial recognition and got this hit on a couple of ATM thefts last night."

She hit a couple of keys and the screen switched to the video from the ATM the first photo that Haven generated came up. He placed a small device against the panel of the ATM and then pressed a button. Suddenly the camera flickered twice and then went blank.

"What happened?" Gibbs asked.

"The ATM emptied its entire cash reserve and then shut down," Bishop said. "Between the two heists, he walked away with ninety-six thousand dollars in cash."

"What is that thing he was using?" Gibbs asked.

"Somehow it overrode the machine's entire programming, changing it to a simple command to dump its contents. The whole procedure must have taken a good twenty minutes to complete."

"And nobody noticed him?" Gibbs asked.

"Not a thing," Tony said.

"But look at this," Bishop said. She hit another key and said, "This is the video from the convenience store across the street. Suddenly a fuzzier picture appeared of the man walking up to the ATM and putting the device on it. Then he touched something on his belt and simply winked out of existence, and the machine started flashing "OUT OF SERVICE".

"Beginning time stamps line up perfectly," she said. "The ending time stamp on the ATM however doesn't exist anymore since its programming was rewritten."

"What happened?" Gibbs demanded.

"I don't know," Bishop said.

"Well find out," Gibbs demanded. "That man has almost a hundred thousand dollars and is after those two kids McGee just took to their grandmother's house. I want answers!" He then grabbed his coat and gun and headed toward the door.

"Where you going, Boss?" DiNozzo asked.

"To the OSI. I need to talk to an astronaut."


	4. Chapter 4: Bad News and More Bad News

CHAPTER 4

 _(Author's note: While continuing my research for this story, I've found two spellings for the type of bionics that Bigfoot possesses. I believe the first one I used was inaccurate on a particular entry on the Bionic Wikia because I haven't found it on any of the other entries. From this point on in the story I'm going to use the more common spelling I found throughout the Wikia as opposed to that one entry. Please remember to review on your way out if you like this story and want to see more. I want to know what you like, what you don't like and where you think this story is going.)_

Jim Castillian looked at the GPS app on his phone. He wasn't really surprised to be getting service out here. The phone he carried was OSI issue, and had a satellite uplink capability. The power supply was a much smaller version of the one that powered Steve, Jaime's and Kate's bionics. He was pretty close to where Steve had told him he could find Apploy, and that when he go there, the alien colony leader would probably detect him when he entered the area.

Deciding to save his strength, he found a large boulder and had a seat and waited. It wasn't long until he heard the sounds of something moving through the undergrowth off to his left. He didn't turn to look, he simply said in a quiet and calm voice, "Steve and Jaime sent me. It's about Gillian."

A low guttural sound came from the bushes, but he didn't move. "I need to talk to Apploy, Big Fella. I'm not bionic or nyosynthetic, so I'm not a threat."

Again there was the growling, but still no attack. Taking a chance he turned to look to his left, and really wished he hadn't. The creature standing in the tree line was a good eight feet tall, and probably weighed a quarter ton of hairy nyosynthetics. Seeming to sense that it had been seen, it turned its back on Jim and began to walk slowly up the trail.

Taking that as a good sign, he got up and followed at what he considered a respectable distance, which he hoped was out of the reach of those powerful arms. He didn't want to think about nyosynthetically powered limbs that could cover the distance between them before he even realized it. He tried not to think of much of anything. He was bringing Apploy bad news about his people, and on top of the communique he received from Steve just before he left for the mountains, it only got worse.

After what seemed like maybe an hour and a half of hiking, he noted the sun was starting to sink over the western ridge and knew it would be dark soon. As they came to the edge of a cliff wall up the mountain, a man suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Jim had been expecting this, but it still startled him and noted that when he flinched slightly, that Sasquatch grunted in what seemed to be a chuckle.

"My name is Aton, Apploy sent me to bring you to him. We have some disturbing news," the man said.

"I'm afraid, that I do as well," Jim said. Then looking up the giant next him, he asked, "Are you sure he's safe?"

The man smiled and said, "He's safe as long as you are no threat."

Jim simply nodded and followed the man inside. He wasn't sure what he had to tell Apploy was going to be construed as a threat or not. Gillian Austin had been a member of this colony who'd come out to live among the humans and try to be a human bridge between her people and the people of Earth. Nobody had expected that she and Michael Austin would fall in love, and marry, and nobody sure as hell expected that they would actually manage to have a child. But he knew the OSI was going to miss her, not only for her scientific skills, but because she was genuinely good people.

Half an hour later, he was deep inside the complex and the short, slightly pudgy form of Apploy entered through a sliding door. He had a worried look on his face. "Mister Castillian, thank you for coming."

"I'm not sure you're going to thank me when I give you the news I've got," Jim said seriously.

"Nedlick and his followers have created some sort of mischief for the people of Earth, I suppose," Apploy said with a tone of resignation. "We will do what we can to help bring him back."

Jim looked up at the huge nyosynthetic creature next to him and said, "I'm afraid the orders are not to bring him in, but to kill him sir," Jim said. "He and his followers have somehow managed to endow themselves with nyosynthetics and have murdered Michael and Gillian Austin. Orders from the OSI are to consider Nedlick too dangerous a target to try and capture. We believe he's after their children."

A sudden movement at his side, and Sasquatch disappeared through the door at a speed that reminded him more of Kate Goldman than Steve or Jaime. "Sasquatch! No!" Apploy called after him, but the giant creature was not listening. He disappeared down the hall in a blur of motion.

"Can you send anyone after him?" Jim asked.

"We can send a recall signal, but he's likely to ignore it. Gillian was his last connection to Shalon. This is going to complicate matters," the older man said touching a stud on his belt. In a matter of seconds two other men entered the room. "Toran, Geffin, Sasquatch has left the complex. Follow him and bring him back if you can. Don't let him hurt anybody." Both men nodded and touched the devices on their belts and disappeared from the room. Looking at Jim, he asked, "You say they have implanted themselves with nyosynthetic upgrades?"

Jim nodded and said, "That's what it looks like. What we can't figure out is why they are going after the children. They literally tortured poor Gillian to get the pass code to the safe-room."

Apploy nodded and turned to Aton and said, "Go the the medical supplies. I want a complete inventory."

"Yes, Apploy," the man said as he too disappeared with a touch of a button on his belt device.

"Come with me Mister Castillian, and we'll talk," Apploy said.

Jim followed him through a door to another section of the complex. "We discovered that that they were missing just a few days ago. I have people hunting for them all over the Earth. We never suspected that they would go to the lengths of endowing themselves with nyosynthetics."

"Why?" Jim asked confused. "It would give them an advantage over just about anybody on the planet. Our closest thing to that kind of technology is Kate Goldman's implants."

Apploy sighed and said, "Because Nedlick is a follower of an unfortunate philosophy among our people that believes in genetic and bodily purity. They believe that nyosynthetics are acceptable for lower life forms like, Sasquatch, but not for our people. Furthermore they do not believe in inter-species breeding."

Jim shook his head and sighed, saying, "Somehow it fits my worldview that there are racists even among people from other planets." He looked at Apploy and asked, "Does that make me a cynic."

Apploy frowned and said, "Mister Castillian, I think the fact that you are asking that question speaks more of your character than you realize."

Before Jim could reply Aton reappeared and said, "A crate of nyosynthetic implants are missing, as are twelve mergernon energy packs."

Apploy nodded and held his hands at his side helplessly, "And there you have it. Twelve nyosynthetic operatives out there. Poor, sweet Gillian. Shalon will be very upset at her death when she awakens." He turned to look at Jim and asked, "What of the children?"

"Right now, they're all staying with Jaime Austin," Castillian told him.

Apploy nodded sadly and said, "It is very likely that Nedlick will go after all three children."

"Why? Jim asked. "What threat are they?"

Apploy sighed and said, "They are an anathema to his worldview. Besides, hurting them would hurt Colonel Austin, and his wife, not to mention me. Nedlick has a very revenge oriented mind. He will try to do as much damage to those who imprisoned him as he can."

"How did he escape?" Jim asked. "I was under the impression that his Time Line Converter had been turned down even slower than Shalon's. How could they get out of that?"

"We don't know," Apploy said. "But I intend to find out. You must protect those children!"

"They were specifically after Harper and Haven. Can you tell me why?" Jim asked.

"In some ways, our resources here on Earth are limited, Mister Castillian, but in other ways we have more of some things than we will ever need. In the latter case, we have an extensive genetic library. Gillian used that library to create Harper and Haven."

"I thought they were adopted and not related to the Austins," Jim said.

"That's what most people think. But Gillian used those banks, along with her own and her husband's genetic material to create hybrids from those banks, reviving the genetics of two rather rare races found throughout the galaxy, that have extraordinary powers of their own. She fast-grew them here in the mountain and when they were a certain age, she arranged for her and her husband to adopt them. When she was finished, she had two bridges that would let her cross the genetic gulf between your people and and ours. Bethany is nearly as much their child as she is their sister."

"So Nedlick will be out to kill all three kids because they aren't genetically pure?" Jim asked.

"And because their deaths would further twist the knife in the backs of the Austins as well as myself. We're the ones who stopped him, we're the ones who tried him here, and sentenced him to time suspension until the mothership returns and he and his followers can be shipped off-planet to a penal facility. He only hates Sasquatch slightly less than he hates the rest of us."

"Any idea how long they've been out of time suspension?" Jim asked.

"We are checking into that now. Please be patient."

Jim shook his head and said, "I can be patient, but I can't make the same claim about Steve and Jaime Austin, not with their grandchildren's lives on the line. Worse yet, another government agency has become involved and the particular agents there have a reputation much like Steve's. "

"Understood," Apploy said. "I will hurry my people along." He stopped and added, "But as you know, we are mostly scientists and researchers. We're not soldiers, and we keep no weapons here. I can send Steve and Jaime advisers, but not weapons. Our only real weapon is already on his way."

"Understood, and any help would be appreciated, "Jim said.

Before Apploy could reply Geffin returned, "Apploy, Sasquatch has seized one of the Time Line Converter units and has disappeared. Wherever he shows up next will be anybody''s guess."

Jim looked at the two men and said, "Most probably the Austin residence outside of DC," Jim said. "With the TLC, he could already be there."

"Not quite," Apploy said, "Sasquatch's intelligence is still limited. He will stop frequently to gather his bearings and determine where he's going. "I'm afraid there's going to be a rash of Bigfoot sightings over the next few days between here and your nation's capital."

"I'll alert Steve," Jim told the man.

"I'll have Geffin take you there," Apploy told him. "It will save time."

Delilah Fielding was not a happy woman right now. Sure, she and Tim had talked about having children... eventually. But she had no desire for them now, and she sure as hell had no desire to be saddled with someone else's children. On top of that, the few moments she'd been with Harper and Haven Austin while Tim gathered some things for an extended stay with Director Austin, had left her feeling very uneasy about the whole situation. The twins for some reason evoked a "Stepford Children" reaction in her. They were simply creepy. And she still couldn't figure out if they were male or female, much less which one was which.

Tim had left the apartment with a quick apology and a kiss before he had disappeared to somewhere in Manasssas to help guard the children. The whole situation left Delilah with the feeling that it was out of her control. Delilah didn't like being out of control, Delilah liked being in control; in control of her life, in control of Tim's life, and in control of as much as she could be. Being confined to a wheelchair was bad enough, but this was unforgivable.

After Tim had left, she'd sat at the table for a long time staring at the dinner that she'd prepared for the two of them. Finally, growing disgusted, she wheeled over to her desk and pulled out her laptop and started searching. There had to be information on this case somewhere.

She started with her limited access to NCIS information. That was of little help. Major Michael Austin, and his wife LCDR Gillian Medria Austin had been found murdered in what was described as a home invasion. One of their children was with her grandparents at the time of the attack and the other two were found in a safe-room. Beyond that, even Ducky's files had been put behind an encrypted firewall.

She tried another tack. Instead of going after NCIS's computers, she targeted the ones at the OSI. That turned out to be two hours of frustration. The encryption on those computers was beyond anything she'd encountered before. She couldn't even get _to_ the firewall of that network, much less _through_ it. Finally, she gave up on the cyber connection and instead went for the human one.

She had a friend who had left the DoD under somewhat suspicious circumstances. He hadn't quite been fired, and he hadn't quite quit, but she got the feeling that he'd been allowed to walk away, but only because the situation would have been embarrassing for everyone, if anything else had been attempted. Dialing the number, she waited somewhat impatiently for him to answer. When he did, she didn't give him a chance to say anything other than, "Hello."

"David, it's Delilah Fielding. I need some information," she said.

"What's up Delilah?" the man on the other line asked.

"What can you tell me about Major Michael Austin and his wife, Lieutenant Commander Gillian Austin?" she said.

He was silent for a few moments. "Delilah," David finally said. "You don't want to get messed up with anything to do with them. If you can, I suggest you walk away right now and forget you ever heard the name Austin outside of the astronaut."

"Can't do that, David," she said. "Tim just ended up with custody of two of their kids, and they're creepy as hell. I want to know how Tim knows the Austins, and what the hell he's bringing into my house."

There was a long silence on the phone for a while before David answered. "Okay, in general terms. I can tell you this. Tim has known Gillian Austin since before she married Michael. He worked with her during his undergraduate and graduate years for a top secret government think-tank that you don't want to know too much about."

"The OSI," she said.

"I didn't use that acronym, and if you're smart, you won't either," David warned.

"Why not?" she demanded.

"Because the head of every government agency in the US is answerable to the President except that one. Something happened back in the late eighties, during the World Unity Games I think, where the Vice-President and the head of that agency came into conflict. When the dust settled, Goldman was reinstated, and that organization got buried deep in the government, and taken completely out of the political loop. Two out of the last three presidents don't even know it exists, including the present one. You don't want to get mixed up with those people Delilah."

"What can you tell me about Michael Austin then?" she demanded, not willing to give up and back down.

She could sense David thinking about what he was going to say. Finally, he said, "He's the son of Colonel Steve Austin, the astronaut. For a while, during his early career in the Air Force he was on the fast track. Then he crashed a jet in a graduation exercise, and there was a long recovery period. He eventually came back and was promoted to captain. That was when he was placed on loan to that organization you mentioned. The rest of his career has been with them."

"And Gillian Austin?" she asked.

"Bio-engineer who worked with Doctor Elizabeth Merrill to develop drugs to help deep divers to more easily adapt to changes in pressure. That's where she met your fiance. After that, she moved to working with Doctor Rudy Wells, and all her research became classified on a level that only a few people at the DoD even know about her, much less what her research is."

"What else can you find out, David?" she demanded.

"I could possibly find out more, but I won't Delilah. I'm sorry, but if you want to pursue it, that's your business. I'm not getting involved. It's just too damn dangerous."

"Well, thanks for that much, David," she said not wanting to alienate a possible ally later.

"Be safe, Delilah. And if you're smart, you won't stick your nose into that organization's business. Either learn to live with Tim and his connection to it, or move on."

"Can you at least tell me how Tim got involved with it?" she asked.

"Delilah, I don't think you appreciate exactly what you have in Tim. He's one of those geniuses who come along in small handfuls every lifetime. He may not realize it and I know you don't realize it, but he's on the fast track within the government. Don't blow a good thing."

"I'm not going to be saddled with another woman's children, David," she told him.

"Then move on, Delilah. Tim has known Gillian Austin longer than you have, and if it's her twins who were adopted five years ago, then he's known them longer than he's known you. If you force him to choose, he'll choose his first responsibility. You simply don't have the time in with him."

That last comment hit Delilah like gut blow. She nearly bit through her tongue not to snap at David, but she knew she might need him again in the future. Finally, she said, "Thank you, David. I appreciate the information."

"Be careful Delilah," he said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Later," she said ending the call.

She sat back and carefully considered what he'd said. She didn't like it, but she couldn't blame him for trying to warn her. He just didn't know Tim like she did. He didn't know just how much she had him wrapped around her finger. She was not going to let go. If he insisted on keeping the kids, there was always boarding school. But maybe it wouldn't come to that.

After a few moments, she dialed Abby. When the goth girl picked up, she said, "Abs, I need some information."

"Hi Delilah," the forensic scientist said, her voice sounding somewhat perturbed.

"You don't sound happy, Abby," Delilah said. "What's wrong?"

She could almost see the woman shake her head on the other side of the call. "Nothing I can talk about," she said. "Vance and Gibbs are keeping secrets from me and I don't like it."

"Then you can't tell me anything about the case Tim's working on then?"

"Sorry, Delilah," Abby said. "Not if I want to keep my job. I'm under direct, do not disobey orders from Vance, and I like my job a little too much."

"Can you at least tell me if you met, Harper and Haven Austin?" she asked.

"Tim's new wards?" Abby asked.

"Yeah," she replied.

"Can't say that I have. Bishop and Gibbs seem to like them. I don't know about Tony," she told her. "I know that Tim is hurting. He's lost two of his best friends outside of the agency and he's angry. He's also putting those kids before his anger and I've never seen him quite this professional. Even Gibbs is impressed."

Abby's words cut Delilah like a knife, but she didn't let it show. She simply said, "Well, I appreciate the information, Abby. I'll talk to you later."

"Later Abby," she said neutrally and hung up.


	5. Chapter 5: Cause of Death

CHAPTER 5

(Author's Note about Canon:

Again, thanks for reading and following my story. I always appreciate reader feedback. A follower wrote and asked how much of this story was canon. I thought I'd reprint my answer to that question here:

Well, the story is original. I'm trying to be very faithful to both series, which means I can't be as mean to Abby and Delilah as I would like to be. *grin* But all the characters mentioned so far with the exception of three of the alien names are canon. (The two agents in this chapter are original) The original series never named more than a small handful of aliens: Apploy, Shalon, Gillian, Nedlick, Falen, and one other. Kate Goldman (Originally Kate Mason played by Sandra Bullock) I have had eventually marrying Jimmy Goldman (Oscar's nephew) are from Bionic Showdown. Max is the bionic German Shepherd is from The Bionic Woman series. Michael Austin and Jim Castillian are from The Return of the Six Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman. (Jim Castillian also shows up in Bionic Showdown, and I think in Bionic Ever After. (He's in all three reunion movies.) He is played by Lee Majors II.) I'm basing the deaths of Rudy Wells and Oscar Goldman on the deaths of the actors (Richard Anderson and Martin E. Brooks) and placed Oscar's death inside the NCIS universe at the same explosion that left Delilah in a wheelchair. I'm also using the events in The Bionic Showdown as justification of why the OSI suddenly went deep inside the Intelligence Community.  
The term nyosynthetics is from The Secret of Bigfoot, as are the energy cells called Mergenon.)

The information about McGee's early schooling is from the television show and the Wikia. I'm a HUGE fan of NCIS, and McGee is one of my favorite characters on the show. I sort of got the idea for this story when I realized that Lindsay Wagner (The Bionic Woman) played Bishop's mother in NCIS. My wife and I sat down and hashed out a timeline that would actually work with both series. I'm loosely basing the serum that allows for the bionics to better interface with the human brain on neotraxin, a sample of which Shalon gave Steve at the end of The Secret of Bigfoot and was later used to cure him in The Return of Bigfoot.

Harper and Haven are my own creations and are based on two races that appear in a a couple of my published novels. (Harper is a Vaengi/human hybrid from Yffandia: Lost Causes, and Haven is a Daeoni/colonist hybrid from Feline Factor 3: The Sword of Sariel, and appear also in Godstones: Ignition, and the Upcoming Godstones 2: Reignition. The Time Line Converters (TLC) were in The Secret and Return of Bigfoot.

So I'll let you decide how much is canon to the original series. I've tried not to break anything established in either series, and only extrapolate from what appeared in both. )

"I'm must apologize for my missing this, Jethro," Ducky said seriously. "My only explanation is that I became so interested in the cybernetic components of the bodies that I was distracted."

"What is it, Ducky?" Gibbs replied ignoring the apology as if it was understood.

Going back to check the bodies again before I sent them over to the OSI, I found something unusual about the cause of death on three of them.

"Duck, this whole case is unusual. We've got robot men out there fighting each other and throwing five thousand dollar sofas through walls. What do you have?"

Ducky nodded and went over to table one and pulled back the sheet from one of the assailants. This one was thin, blond, and looked to be in his early thirties. "This was the cause of death on this man," Doctor Mallard said as he indicated a massive bruise on the man's chest just below the heart. There was a much smaller area of darker discoloration at the center of the bruise.

"What am I looking at, Ducky?" Gibbs asked.

"A single blow, delivered just under the heart. It snapped one of the nyosynthetically reinforced ribs and drove it upward through his heart," Ducky said. "Note the size and the orientation of the center bruising, where the contact was made."

"I don't understand, Ducky," Gibbs said.

"According to his OSI file, Major Austin was about your size and build, Jethro. And according to the OSI, he was the only bionic individual fighting to defend his family. For him to deliver this kind of blow he would have to be standing close, and it would be an uppercut style attack to the ribs." He stepped in close to Gibbs and gestured to show how his fist would lie against Gibbs' chest at a 45 degree angle.

"And your point, Ducky?" Gibbs asked.

"The bruising is not knuckled, and it's about half the size of what an adult male's fist would be."

"Maybe he was hit with an object?" Gibbs asked, realizing that if that were the case, Ducky wouldn't be talking to him about it.

"Look closely at the bruising, Jethro. What shape do you see?"

Gibbs peered closely at the bruise and realized that the center section was a half-moon shape, and was only about an inch across. "He looked at his own hand, and compared the shape. "Palm-heel strike," Gibbs said. "But the print is only about half the size it should be. And the angle suggests and upward blow."

Ducky nodded and said, "The bruise is too small for either Major Austin or his wife, who was not nyosynthetically augmented to deliver."

"What are you saying Ducky? That one of the kids did this?" Jethro asked.

Ducky simply shrugged, covered the form and went to the next one. "We found pieces of horse-hair plaster in the back of this man's scalp. It matches a hole Bishop found near the ceiling of the living room. He was choked until he passed out, and then his neck snapped. Look closely at his throat, Jethro."

The man's neck was one large bruise all the way around. He looked up at Ducky and said, "No finger marks. It looks like someone simply put a steel band around his neck and squeezed."

"Precisely, Jethro. His reinforced spinal cord had been neatly snapped below the line of the trapezius muscle, and not by a twisting force, but a sheering one," Ducky said.

"Any sign of a blow to the head?" Gibbs asked.

Ducky shook his head and said, "No. Just where he hit the wall, and a sheering force to the neck."

Jethro nodded and began to suspect what Ducky was getting at. "And the third one?"

"Cause of death was easy to determine, they were still in the body," Ducky said.

"At this point, you wouldn't be bringing me down here for something as mundane as bullet wounds," Gibbs told him.

"No. Not bullets," Ducky said. He went over to a drawer and pulled out an evidence bag containing half a dozen high end steak knives. "All five of these knives pierced the thoracic cavity and embedded themselves in a six inch grouping through the assailant's heart. They nearly passed clean through the body." Gibbs was a trained sniper, and he knew how tight that grouping represented to a sharp-shooter. A moving target and six knives at that velocity was impossible.

"You're telling me that someone threw six knives in a grouping that Ziva would have found impressive with enough force to pass almost through a body?" Jethro asked. "Can human hand to eye coordination be improved that much with these bionic implants?" Gibbs asked.

Ducky shrugged and said, "I honestly don't know. When a knife is thrown by an expert, there is usually some variance in angle, especially when thrown at a moving target. Everyone of these knives pierced simultaneously, and never left their grouping, never spread out."

"That's impossible, Ducky!" Gibbs protested.

Ducky chuckled and said, "I am quite aware of that, Jethro. But then again, two other assailants have fatal wounds that could only have been caused by a high powered laser."

"So how would these wounds have been made?" Jethro asked.

"The latter two, I have no idea," he said.

"And the first?" Jethro asked.

"By a very strong person who stood about four and a half feet tall," Ducky said.

"One of the children," Jethro replied. "They lied about when they went into the safe-room. They were in the middle of that fight," Gibbs said.

"That would be my guess, Jethro."

"Why would they lie?" Gibbs asked.

"You would have to ask them, Jethro. But they knew what their father was, so maybe they were trying to protect his and possibly their secret," Ducky said. "And interestingly enough, these men's blood types are as unique as Lieutenant Commander Austin's," Ducky told him.

"Meaning?" Gibbs asked.

"That they aren't entirely human, Jethro. Their internal organs are not exactly in the same layout as yours or mine. It makes me curious about those children," he said.

"Ducky!" Gibbs protested.

"I'm serious, Jethro. I'm wondering if they're entirely human. I'm wondering what our Timothy has gotten himself involved with," Ducky told him.

"Taking responsibility for the children of friends," Gibbs replied.

Ducky nodded and said, "I understand that, and even applaud it, Jethro. I'm just wondering if his becoming their guardian is going to put him in danger."

Gibbs shrugged and said, "Possibly. But our job puts us in danger. Just ask Kate, and Dorneget."

"And if they're not human?" Ducky asked.

"McGee cares about them, and is willing to take them in. That makes them family, Ducky," Gibbs replied.

Ducky nodded and said, "I tend to agree. But I thought you should know."

Gibbs smiled and said, "That doesn't mean I don't need to talk to them about what happened. I need to know exactly when they went into that safe-room, and what they did to the assailants. More importantly, I need to know if they know where the rest are."

"Then perhaps you should talk to Timothy," Ducky said.

"I intend to do just that, Ducky," Gibbs said turning to leave autopsy as Jimmy Palmer entered.

It was well into the night when Jaime finally felt somewhat safe for her grandchildren. Kate Goldman was inside with Jim Castillian watching the monitors, and the estate was locked down tight as a drum. Bethany had cried herself to sleep into Max's coat early in the evening and had not awakened when Timothy McGee arrived with Harper and Haven.

Jaime knew that the twins were hiding something, they wouldn't look her in the eye, and she wasn't sure what it was, but she knew they were bothered by something. For one thing, although they'd always been close, they were almost clinging to each other. According to Audrey Moss their minds were locked down tight, and they only seemed to communicate with each other telepathically. She did suspect however that McGee was sometimes privy to that conversation, but only when the twins decided for him to be.

As for McGee himself, the man looked haggard. He didn't have any special gifts to help him keep going, and it had obviously been a long day for him. Currently, he was sitting in the living room of the large home that she and Steve had purchased in Manassas when Steve had taken over the OSI after Oscar had died. To be honest, he looked like hell warmed over. She remembered those feelings all too well.

Setting the china tea set onto the coffee table, she looked over at the younger man and asked, "You're feeling pulled in too many directions aren't you?"

Tim looked up and nodded, saying, "Yeah, I am." His eyes darted to the stairs where the twins had finally gone to their rooms and said, "I never thought my service to the OSI would become part of an NCIS case, and I damn sure never thought I'd be investigating Michael and Gillian's death. On top of that, I'm not sure that things are going to settle down with my fiance over this."

Jaime nodded, slipping into her counselor mode and asked, "What do you mean?"

Tim shrugged and said, "It's just a gut feeling I get. I care about Delilah, even love her, but sometimes I think she's very self-centered, and I'm afraid Harper and Haven are going to upset that apple cart."

Jaime kept her own counsel about that, and instead asked him, "And if it becomes a problem?"

Tim took a deep breath and said, "I'd like to think that we can work through it. I made Mike and Gill a promise and I intend to keep it. I'm hoping that Delilah can understand that." Jaime didn't need the twins' telepathic abilities, or even Audrey Moss' to tell that McGee didn't really believe that was possible.

"You do realize that almost everything about Harper and Haven is classified, don't you?" she finally asked.

He sipped his tea, and then his mouth made a tight line across his lower face before he answered. "I knew not to take them to Bethesda. Doctor York seemed to be a legitimate alternative. I take it, he's taken up Doctor Wells' work?"

Jaime nodded and told Tim something that probably wasn't very professional, but she got the feeling that he needed to know a few things. "It was either him or Doctor Michael Marchetti, and to be honest, Marchetti and Rudy had a falling out several years after I went active as an agent." She leaned back and said, "You know Rudy was very fond of you. He always said that you understood the human side of bionics better than most people."

Tim nodded and said, "That's high praise. Thank you."

He put down his cup and asked, "Jaime, do you think I can do it?"

"Do what?" Jaime asked.

"Actually be able to defend and raise two kids whose very bodies are classified?" he asked. "I mean, I think I can handle the raising them part, but I'm not so sure I can defend them."

Jaime leaned forward, brushed a stray blond lock of hair behind her ear and said, "Harper and Haven are for the most part capable of defending themselves. What it's going to take is a firm hand to make sure they don't get out of control. Can you do that?"

Tim frowned softly and said, "The hard part of that equation will be to not turn into my father."

"I think you've got a little too much of your grandmother in you for that to happen," she told the NCIS agent.

"You knew Dad?" Tim asked.

She nodded and said, "Very few men or women made it to flag rank that either Steve or I didn't meet."

Tim nodded as if he understood. Finally, he asked, "Can I ask you a question?"

She smiled at him and said, "Sure."

"Including Max, I did programming for seven sets of bionics. But Director Austin said there were now only three bionic human operatives left. What happened to the others?"

Jaime nodded and frowned. Tim always did know how to pick difficult subjects. "Barney Hiller was killed in a car accident two years ago. Andy Sheffield, well your programming and the new serum helped him a lot. It got him to walking and then running bionically again. He actually became an active agent for a few years. But he was killed on a mission last year," she told him.

"Jaime?" Tim asked.

"Yeah, Tim?" she asked.

"Doesn't it seem odd to you that so many bionic people are dying within a few years of each other?"

"People die, Tim," she said. "In this business, they die a bit more often than usual," she replied, not really believing it herself. The idea had been niggling at her brain since this morning too.

"Too many people in my life have been dying or going away lately, Jaime. I've stopped burying great aunts and uncles and have started burying my parents, and my friends," he said. "And those that I don't bury move on. I'm beginning to wonder if anything is permanent." She was starting to understand something about Tim. He felt a powerful pressure to perform and to perform well, and now he was starting to feel just a bit vulnerable to it.

"I'm sorry about your Dad," she said. "I know he passed just a few months ago."

He nodded and said, "We had only just started to reconnect. I don't think we ever really resolved anything between us, but I at least did for myself."

She sipped her tea when she heard the sounds of nails clicking on the hardwood floors upstairs. Pushing a lock of hair over her bionic ear, she tilted her head slightly until she realized it was Max starting to make his rounds through the house. After a few moments, he settled down and she suspected that he was lying in the hall outside the children's rooms.

"What is it?" Tim asked.

"Just Max," she said. "He's having a bit of a hard time himself. He knows that the children are in danger, and they're all three in separate rooms. It's probably driving the shepherd in him crazy.

Tim smiled and said, "I understand. I have a German Shepherd myself."

"Really?' Jaime asked surprised. "What's his name?"

"Jethro," Tim told her. "It's a long story. I got strong-armed into taking him, but am glad that I did."

She smiled thinking fond thoughts of Oscar and said, "I've been strong-armed into a few things myself, so I understand. Sometimes the people we care about the most can put the most pressure on us."

He nodded and then his eyes shone just a bit brighter as if he'd suddenly realized something, "You know, you're right. Thanks Jaime."

"I take it that it was something I said?" she said, letting the surprise in her voice be evident.

He nodded saying, "You just helped me solve a problem. Trust me, you've at least help me understand how to deal with one piece of pressure in my life. Now if I can just keep m... uh... Mike and Gill's kids alive through this."

Jaime suppressed the smile that Tim's near slip of the tongue almost caused. "Glad to be of help, Tim."

He nodded and asked, "Exactly what is it about Harper and Haven that's classified?" he asked. "Besides the fact that Gillian isn't exactly human."

"Figured that much out, did you?" she asked.

"There's enough evidence so that Abby has figured it out," Tim said.

"Is that going to be a problem?" Jaime asked wondering if they were going to have to prevail upon Apploy's services to protect the secret of his own people.

Tim shrugged and said, "I hope not. Abby is a good person, she's just a bit selfish though when it comes to her own worldview. For someone who claims to be open-minded, she insists that everyone conform to _her_ idea of what's right and wrong, and not necessarily what's really right and wrong. And she can be tenacious about it."

Jaime nodded and said, "Perhaps you can let it slip that she may be on the right track, but that revealing it could cause innocent people to be hurt, specifically Michael's and Gillian's children. Children you're responsible for now."

He suddenly fixed his eyes on Jaime and asked, "That's not going to be a problem with you or Director Austin is it?"

Jaime felt an intensity under that gaze that she'd seldom felt in the past. Finally she shook her head and said, "Not as long as we get to see our grandchildren on a regular basis."

Tim nodded his head and said, "Good. I was worried about that. I asked for Gibbs' help and I'd really hate to see him and Director Austin lock horns on that."

Jaime just smiled not letting it slip that she and Steve were perfectly happy having Tim take care of Harper and Haven. But she already knew it was the children's wish, and as callous as it might sound, it gave the OSI one more connection to McGee. "So would I. I'm not sure Washington would still be standing when they were finished," she said with a slight chuckle.

Martin Griffin signed off on the documents Doctor Palmer required—in triplicate—and sighed. The world was supposed to be going paperless, but he found himself having to do more actual paperwork than he remembered when he was in the Navy. But still, he understood. This was a chain of evidence document that would at least keep NCIS out of trouble with auditors, if not the OSI.

After loading the bodies and their components into the van, he and Ken Blackwell climbed into the van for the three hour trip outside of Washington DC to the secure facility where Doctor York would go over their components. Maybe these bodies would help them get the bastards that killed Mike and Gillian Austin. He damn well hoped so.

An hour and a half later, they had turned off Interstate 66 and were on a backwoods road that led to York's facility on the edge of the West Virginia line. The moon was sinking in the west, and the clock on the dashboard read 4:17, when suddenly a bearded figure leaped out into the road in front of them, moving so fast that his entire body was motion blurred.

Martin wasn't taking any chances. This reinforced van weight six tons, and could hit a hundred twenty miles an hour. He hit the accelerator and slammed into the form at eighty. He wasn't surprised when the man appeared to be unharmed and rolled back alongside the vehicle trying to get some purchase on the van's surface. But physics were still physics, and bionic, or nyosynthetic the man might be, he still weighed a maximum of two hundred pounds or so. Even if he could get a purchase on the van, its momentum should just pull him along or more likely yank itself out of his grip.

Martin noticed with some satisfaction that the man rolled along the highway behind him before he disappeared around a curve in the road. That was when the van slammed into a five foot thick oak tree laying across the road. The last thing Martin remembered was the sight of the van's steering wheel slamming into his chest.

(Please remember to review on your way out.)


	6. Chapter 6: Angry Women

CHAPTER 6

Tony wasn't entirely comfortable with this situation as he looked at Gibbs at the head of the conference table. McGee was next to Tony and Bishop on the other side. Across the table were the twins and Doctor Audrey Moss. Standing in the corner was Kate Goldman. Tony took the time to study both kids closely. The fact that he still couldn't figure out if they were boys or girls or one of each still bothered him on some level deep in his own gut. They each had shoulder length raven hair, cut in a style that could be either a boy or a girl. One was wearing a USAF tee-shirt, and the other a Navy tee. Both were dressed in a denim jacket, with their name on it above the pocket, and blue jeans and sneakers. Their deep blue eyes shone with an intelligence that made him wonder who was exactly in charge. Their skin was fair, just a few shades darker than what would be considered unhealthy. A line of freckles danced across the bridge of each of their noses. Both of their eyes looked somewhat bloodshot, like they'd been crying and their faces had an understandably sad caste to them.

With a gentle tone, Gibbs asked, "You weren't exactly honest with us about when you went into that safe room, were you?"

Harper looked at him and shrugged before saying, "At the time you weren't cleared to know about bionics and nyosynthetics."

"Harper?" Doctor Moss said, "Agents Gibbs, DiNozzo, Bishop, and McGee have been cleared for Security Level Six information about bionics and nyosynthetics."

Harper nodded and said, "And I suspect you figured out that mother wasn't from around these parts?"

"There is some indication of that," Timothy said. "Your grandmother told me a little about it last night. She explained the origin of nyosynthetics to me, and about the neotraxin."

The two children looked at each other and said, "Haven and I are hybrids."

"Hybrids between humans and your mother's people?" Gibbs asked taking the information with an aplomb that surprised Tony.

With a shake of the head Harper said, "No, sir. A direct hybrid for humans and the people my mother comes from is impossible with the technology available to either group, whether it be Terran or their technology."

"I don't understand," Bishop said sitting back.

Again the twins looked at each other and then back to Bishop. "Mother is an expert in both human and alien genetics as well as nyosynthetics. At the base where her people are staying, they have a vast library of genetic material from all over the galaxy, and in some cases beyond."

"That's why she was working with the Navy when I met her?" Tim asked.

Again, a shake of Harper's head indicated a no. "No, sir. After the incident in Mexico, her people decided that perhaps a closer working relationship with certain humans might be helpful in avoiding any more misunderstandings between us. It also allowed both sides to call on the other for help. Mrs. Goldman's bionics were the first application of that alliance."

"So you aren't alien/human hybrids?" Tony asked.

"Harper is, I'm not," Haven said.

"What? Please explain that," Bishop asked.

"Like I indicated," Harper stepped in and said, "A direct hybrid between mom and dad was impossible even with mother's people's advanced technology. She had to find another way." Tony noticed that Harper kept referring to their mother's people, not as his or her people. Both evidently identified as human, or Terran, or Earthlings or some other sci-fi term, that he was sure McGee would know the proper term for.

Harper continued, "I am a human hybrid with an alien race called the Vaengi that mother's people have encountered in the past. The Vaengi can produce offspring with a certain strain of humanity under very difficult circumstances. Mother was very good at gene-splicing. Father's genes were modified and applied to the egg cell that mother modified with Vaengi genetics, and I was conceived. Haven came from mother's egg cells spliced with Daeoni genes. The Daeoni are like mother's people, incapable of producing offspring with humans. We were conceived and fast-grown at her people's base. We were taught in-vitro and then Mother, and Oscar Goldman arranged for us to have an adoption by Mother and Father. From our cells, mother was able to alter hers and father's genetics so that she could become pregnant with Bethany. Bethany is the bridge between humanity and Mother's people. We're simply the support columns of that bridge."

"That still doesn't explain what happened at the house," Gibbs said.

"Agent Gibbs, at the time you weren't cleared to know what happened, so we lied," Harper said.

"What did happen then?" Bishop asked.

"It was early in the morning. Bethany had spent the night with our grandparents. We were having breakfast before school, and Mom and Dad went to work when nine men came busting through the backdoor, the front door, and the window over the sink. Two shots hit Mom before we knew what was happening. Dad knocked one of the men through the front window and onto the porch," Harper said. "Then one grabbed Haven"

"So Harper hit him, with a palm heel strike like Dad taught us," Haven said.

Harper nodded and said, "When he collapsed, Haven tossed one against the living room wall, and I think broke his neck. The other..." Harper looked at Gibbs and then McGee before continuing, "The steak knives from dinner last night were still in the dish drainer. Haven hit another attacker with them."

"Toss them against the wall? Hit them with the knives? How?" Gibbs asked.

The twins looked to Doctor Moss, and then to Agent Goldman. Both women nodded and Harper said, "Show them Haven."

Haven's head ducked and the child's eyes suddenly glowed. The pen in front of DiNozzo rose from the table, and shot across the room burying itself in the wall under the painting of _Old Ironsides_.

"And you hit, one of the attackers with enough force to break his rib and drive it into his heart?" Gibbs asked.

Harper nodded, nearly in tears. The child's voice was close to breaking, saying, "Yes sir. We didn't mean to kill anybody. They caught us by surprise, and they hurt Mother. I guess we over-reacted. We're sorry." Both children were now crying.

Gibbs reached across the table and patted the child's hands. "You protected your family. You have nothing to be sorry for."

"That was when Dad stuffed us in the safe room. Right as the door closed, we saw him get shot," Haven said. "After that, we felt his mind die. Then they started on Mother." Now both children were openly weeping.

"Felt his mind die?" Tony asked.

"We're telepathic, Agent DiNozzo," Harper said, putting an arm around the other child. "But I think you've started to figure that out already."

DiNozzo shook his head trying not to think about what it would be like to actually feel your parent dying.

"Jim Castillian got some information from Apploy on who the attackers are," Kate Goldman said.

"Who is Apploy?" Gibbs asked.

"He's the leader of the alien colony," Mrs. Goldman told them. "And Gillian's father. He's sending us what help he can. But they don't have any weapons."

"Then how do they protect themselves from outsiders?" Bishop asked. "I wouldn't travel across the galaxy and land on another planet without some way of defending myself."

"Oh, they can defend themselves," Kate said. "Or at least they could. Unfortunately, their defense was rather fond of Gillian, and is on his way here."

Both the children looked at each other in surprise. Then turning to Kate, Harper asked,

"The guardian is coming here?"

Kate nodded and said, "He took a TLC and disappeared. We think he's looking for Nedlick."

"Who's Nedlick?" Harper asked.

Kate took a deep breath and said, "A little over forty years ago, a small group of rebels tried to break off from Apploy's team and set themselves up as untouchable rulers of this planet. Gillian, and your grandparents stopped them, but not before Nedlick set off a volcano in Mexico. They were placed in suspension to await the mothership to take them to a penal facility. But somehow they've escaped." She smiled slightly and said, "One of the rebels has the dubious distinction of being allergic to most allergens on this planet as well as being the only person to survive being struck three times in rapid succession by bionic or nyosynthetic beings while airborne."

"So how many more of these aliens do we have to deal with?" Tony asked.

"That have bionic enhancements?" Agent Goldman replied. "For now, six. But last night they attacked the van carrying the bodies of their fallen comrades and recovered the nyosynthetic parts, as well as their power sources. It won't take them long to enhance another six with the equipment they have."

"Just how vulnerable are these enhanced operatives?" Gibbs asked.

"Depends on the enhancements. They can take more damage than a human, but they could still be killed with a gun. The problem is that their reactions are so fast, hitting them is nigh impossible," Agent Goldman said.

"So the trick is to catch them off guard?" Gibbs asked.

"Essentially," Goldman replied.

"And this guardian you mentioned?" Gibbs asked.

"A definite complication. He's a lower life form from their home planet, nyosynthetically enhanced to make him more than a match for any human with those abilities."

"Lower life form?" Tony asked.

"Intelligence level of a six year old," Goldman said. "He was very fond of Gillian, and absolutely despises Nedlick. Nedlick used him in his first escape and threatened his creator. If he finds Nedlick first, he's likely to rip him apart and pick his teeth with the bones." She stopped and said, "And I understand he's somewhat fond of the children."

"That's because Harper gives him sweets," Haven said.

"I'm not the only one!" the child protested in what had to have been the most normal, child-like behavior Tony had yet to see out of them.

"So what do we do now?" Bishop asked leaning back in the chair.

Goldman smiled at Gibbs and said, "NCIS still has the lead on this case. OSI's first priority is protecting Harper, Haven, and Bethany. Second priority is stopping Nedlick and his band. Third priority is cleaning up security issues later."

Tony watched Gibbs lean back in his chair surprised. He'd never gotten this kind of cooperation out of another agency before, not even the FBI. "What are you not telling us Agent Goldman?"

The dark-haired woman who reminded Tony of Sandra Bullock smiled at him and said, "A great deal, actually. But none of it is germane to this operation. We're willing to work with NCIS because of Agent McGee, and because Director Austin told us to give you all the help we can."

Gibbs nodded and asked, "So what can NCIS do against the robot men?"

"They can be stopped, Agent Gibbs," Doctor Moss told him. "It just requires a lot of force, or it applied in the correct way."

Before Gibbs could reply, there was a knock at the door. The guard outside stuck in his head and said, "Miss Sciuto wants to see Agent McGee in the lab."

McGee looked at the twins and they looked at each other and then to Agent Goldman. Finally, Harper said, "We'll be okay, Uncle Tim. Go on."

Gibbs nodded and said, "Go on McGee."

"Excuse me," Tim said rising from the table. "I'll be downstairs if you need me."

Tim entered the lab to find Delilah sitting there with Abby behind her tapping her foot. Tim didn't need telepathy to understand the body language both women were sending out loud and clear. He looked over at his friend Abby and said, "Abby, would you give us the lab please."

"I will not," Abby said.

He looked at her and then back at Delilah and said, "In that case, anything you have to say Delilah can wait until we are at home."

"If you wait until then Tim, I won't be at home."

Tim stopped in his tracks, but didn't turn around. "That's your decision Delilah. But I'm not having an argument with you with an audience."

"How do you know we're going to argue?" Delilah asked.

"Because yours and Abby's body language tell me you're both angry about something. I'm not going to be double-teamed. I'm not in the mood for it, and I'm too tired for it." He began walking forward again.

"Stop right there, Tim!" Abby said as the doors to the lab closed. He watched as the light indicator for the lock come on. "You've got some explaining to do."

Without turning around, Tim reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. With a quick tapping of several keys, he sent an email to his own computer upstairs. He stood waiting with his back to both women while Delilah demanded, "How could you Tim?!"

"I can't believe you McGee!" Abby demanded.

Ten seconds later, the light on the door changed again, and it slid back and he left the room. "What the hell did you do to my lock McGee?!" Abby demanded as he headed toward the elevator.

He was not going to drag this through the halls of NCIS and he was not going to have classified information tossed out in an argument. Rudy Wells had taught him better than that. Ziva had taught him better than that. Gibbs had taught him better than that. Hell, his father had even taught him better than that.

He closed the elevator door as Delilah came wheeling out of the lab after him. "Tim wait!"

He reached over and held the door and let her in it. Then he closed it behind her and waited for it to start on its journey upward. When they were well between floors, he hit the stop button and then quietly asked, "You wanted to talk to me about something Delilah?"

"Yeah," she said. "When were you going to tell me that there was a cure for my being in this wheelchair you put me in?"

"I put you in?" he asked, not letting his voice rise. "I don't remember setting the bomb that blew up that gala."

"One of the bad guys you were chasing set it," she demanded.'

"You were chasing him too, Delilah," Tim told her.

"So you were simply going to let me live out my life in a wheelchair like a good little woman when you knew there was a cure for my injury?" she demanded.

He turned and looked at her flinty stare. Sighing he said, "When I found out that you were paralyzed, I went to the OSI myself and asked for you to be considered a candidate for the operation. I was told you weren't"

"Why not?!" she demanded.

Tim sighed and asked, "Do you really think I didn't go to bat for you, Delilah? I personally begged Rudy Wells to consider you for the operation. And you know something? He did. He did it simply for my asking. But you weren't a good candidate."

"Why?' she demanded.

He took another deep breath and said, "First off the nature of your injury made the only possible help you could get was total limb replacement. You'd already told me that being paralyzed from the waist down left you feeling less than human. Furthermore, you remember all those psych evaluations you complained about?"

Looking somewhat stunned, she nodded her head and said, "Yeah. So what?"

"Well, several of them were from the OSI. They determined that you would not make a good psychological candidate for the program."

"What did they say?" she demanded.

He shook his head and said, "I have no idea. But Doctor Jaime Austin herself came to me and apologized profusely for the fact that they couldn't help you. You see, Delilah, the OSI has determined that only certain personality types can adjust to the procedure. They've had their fair share of failures, and every indicator was that they would end up failing you too. So I did go to bat for you. I even offered to resign my position at NCIS and go to work for Doctor Wells if it would get you into the program. It was a no go from the start."

For long moments she sat there stunned at his admission. Finally she said, "You're lying."

"I'm not lying, Delilah," he told her and reached over and hit the elevator's power switch.

"You're lying," she said again. "And furthermore, you need to make a choice. It's either those kids go live somewhere else, or I do."

Tim felt the tears well up in his eyes. He was afraid of something like this. But he'd made a promise to Mike and Gill, and he was going to keep it. He knew she was reaching out, grasping for something else, some way to prove that he loved her more than anybody else in the world. The problem was he had no idea how to do that. "I hope you don't mean that," he finally said.

"I mean it!" she said angrily as she rolled out of the elevator into the bullpen. Stopping at his desk she fought with her hand for a moment and then slammed something on his desk. "I'll send someone for my things," she said as she rolled her chair on out of the bullpen.

Tim stopped at his desk and looked at the diamond ring lying there. "McGee! What the hell did you do to my locks?!" Abby demanded as she came bursting from the stairwell.

He stopped and looked up at her, pocketing the ring. "Director Shepherd asked me to put an override on the locks to the lab after you locked yourself in there with Jethro."

"Does Vance know about this?" she demanded.

" _Director_ Vance knows about it, and approves of it," the tall former boxer in question said from the stairs. "Miss Sciuto, I would like to see you in my office."

Tim shook his head, grabbed three waters from the vending machine and headed back toward the conference room, trying to get his own emotions under control before he got near the kids.

Before he could reach the door, the group came pouring out. Kate Goldman looked at him and said, "I'm taking them back to the Austin estate."

Tim nodded and said, "I'll be here trying to track down where Nedlick and his people might be hiding."

She smiled and said, "Good. I gave Bishop a list of things that they would need to have access to. That should help narrow things down."

"Thanks, Kate," he said. Then looking at Harper and Haven, he said, "You two do what Kate, and Jaime, or anybody that's watching out for you tell you to do. I'm not sure when I'll be there. I may have to work through the night."

The two children nodded and said in unison, "Okay, Uncle Tim."

He smiled at them and watched the three of them leave. As he stood there, Doctor Moss stepped up to him and said, "That seems to have been unpleasant."

"What, talking to the twins?" he asked.

"No, talking to Miss Fielding," she said.

"And you know about that how?" he asked.

"There is a reason that Steve and Jaime want me in on this, Tim. Maybe you should check into some of the files at the OSI to help you with this Nedlick thing. You may learn a few things about yourself and me at the same time."

"I'll do that, Doctor Moss. Just as soon as I have time."

She smiled, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "I'm sure you will. If you need to talk, mine or Jaime's doors are always open to you, Tim."

"Thanks, Doctor Moss," he told her as she left. "I appreciate it."

 **Please remember to review on the way out. Speculation is perfectly fine.**


	7. Chapter 7: Attack!

CHAPTER 7

Ellie Bishop did not want to have the conversation she was about to have. It was going to lose her one friend, possibly two, and she didn't have so many friends as she could afford to lose any. Still, what was right was right, and if she didn't at least talk to Gibbs about it could cost her her job.

So, late in the evening, she like so many other agents, directors, and friends in the past, made the trip down to the basement of Gibbs house. There she found him sanding a piece of wood while the strains of piano music were playing on the the tape player. Seeing her, he reached over, turned off the player and waited for her to come on down the stairs.

"Gibbs, I need to talk to you," Ellie said without preamble.

He shrugged and said, "So talk." he went back to working the piece of wood.

"It's about McGee, and about Delilah," she stopped a moment and then added, "And about me."

That seemed to have gotten Gibbs attention. He stopped what he was doing and asked, "Go on."

"You know that Delilah and Tim had a fight today at the Yard," she said.

Gibbs said nothing, but his face suggested that he wasn't happy with the conversation. "You have something to say, Bishop, spit it out," he said.

"She gave him his ring back," Ellie told him. The comment didn't seem to faze Gibbs. "Do you know why they fought?"

"Is it important to the case?" Gibbs demanded, making it clear he didn't like talking about his team behind their backs.

She nodded and said, "I think it is."

"Then stop hem-hawing around and spit it out, Bishop," he repeated himself.

"Delilah, hacked my laptop and got my case notes. She used the information in there to beat up McGee about getting bionic replacements."

Gibbs put down his tool and looked at her and said, "I'm not the one you need to be reporting this to."

She nodded and said, "I know. But I wanted to go through the chain of command. Tell my superior of the security breach and then go on up the chain."

"So what's the problem, Bishop?"

"When this goes to Vance, Delilah's likely to lose her job at the DoD," she said. "At the least, she'll be reprimanded."

Gibbs nodded and said, "She made her bed when she hacked your computer. And I thought yours and McGee's computers were pretty close to being unhackable."

"They are, but Delilah is around both of us enough to pick up subtle cues about passwords," she said. "I checked mine and the hack was put in there months ago."

"Meaning she's had access to NCIS files?" he asked.

Bishop nodded and said, "I don't know if her boss at the DoD knows or not, but it's a serious breach of our security."

She watched as her boss nodded and picked up his phone and hit a number. When the call went through, he said, "Director Vance, Bishop's got something to tell you."

Ellie gave her boss a sad smile and took the phone. "Director Vance, I discovered something today that you should know. I just finished telling my immediate superior."

"Go on, Bishop," the Director said patiently.

"Today I discovered a backdoor had been placed in my computer by Delilah Fielding. She hacked my case notes on the case we're currently working on," she told him.

"I see, Bishop. Thank you for informing me, and for going through channels, I will be taking action this evening. You've done everything you're supposed to do. Don't worry," the man said.

"Thank you sir," she told him.

"Now put Gibbs back on the phone," he said.

"Yes, sir," she said handing the phone back to her boss.

Gibbs took it and said, "Yeah." He listened for a few moments and then said, "We'll take care of it." Closing the phone, he told her, "You did the right thing, Ellie. Director Vance was already aware of the leak. Abby told him about it this afternoon."

"This is going to be just another blow to McGee," she said.

Gibbs frowned and shrugged, "Life does that to us. I think McGee can handle it."

Entering the foyer of his home and putting away his coat, Director Austin realized that with the sensor suite laid out on his lawn, it was going to be nigh impossible for Nedlick and his men to get near the house without being noticed. Even leaping to the walls and or roof would still identify their presence. He felt good about that much at least.

What he didn't feel good about was what Geffin had told him, almost on any level at all. First, was the situation with Sasquatch. Steve knew that his old foe and friend had been irrationally attached to Shalon, and to a lesser extent Gillian. He was the same way about the three children sleeping upstairs. His showing up in downtown Washington could create a press nightmare that he would rather not deal with.

A low mumble came from the direction of the living room off the foyer, something he picked up with the bionic enhancements Rudy had installed just before he and Jaime had gotten married. Those upgrades had allowed Jaime to save him in South America, and when they got back, his second generations bionics got upgraded like hers to something closer to Kate's.

Tiptoeing into the living room, he was surprised to find Tim McGee stretched out on the sofa, sleeping fitfully. He noted the man's shoes were on the floor, but he was still wearing his Sig Saur. Steve shook his head and said quietly, "We have guest bedrooms in this house, and you sleep on the sofa?"

"Better to guard the door, Director," Tim said sitting up immediately, clearly coming instantly awake.

"I got in this far without waking you, McGee," Steve told him. "Nedlick and his men would be on top of you before you could get to your feet."

McGee shrugged and said, "Maybe, maybe not. You don't know who's sleeping at the top of the stairs."

"Max," Steve said.

McGee shook his head and said, "No. He's sleeping in the hall between the kids' bedrooms. Jethro is at the top of the stairs."

"Jethro?" Steve asked.

"My German Shepherd," Tim said. "It was your wife's idea."

Steve nodded and said, "I would hate for something to happen to your dog, McGee."

"So would I Director, but I would hate far more for something to happen to Mike and Gill's kids," Tim told him. "I'll stack the deck anyway I have to to protect them."

Steve smiled to himself realizing that the man was making sense. He nodded and said, "Okay. But tomorrow night one of the other agents take the sofa. If you aren't at your best, you'll get yourself hurt."

"Yes sir," McGee told him.

"Night McGee," Steve told him as he left the room.

"Goodnight Director Austin," McGee replied, settling back down on the sofa.

Steve slowly climbed the stairs and found a strange dog he'd never seen before lying at the top of them. The dog looked up, growled once, sniffed, turned to look down the hall where Max was sleeping and then lay his head back down, never taking his eyes off Steve. The dog watched him as he went down the hall and scratched Max behind the ears, and then looked in on the children.

Opening Bethany's door, he was surprised to find the bed empty. Switching his eye to infra-red he could see small heat patterns where her tiny feet had left the room through the door. Following those tracks, he discovered all three children lying in Harper's bed. Harper and Haven were each sleeping on the outside of the bed, with Bethany cuddled up between her siblings.

Even with his bionic eye, it took him just a second to realize what he thought was a comforter lying across Haven and Bethany really was. There was a reason that Harper sometimes slept stomach side down. He smiled and closed the door behind him. He should have realized all three children were in the same room. Max was clearly lying much closer to this door than the other three.

Smiling he turned down the hall to the other end of the house toward where he and Jaime had their own master suite. As he crossed the stairwell, he heard the sounds of crashing glass, and a struggle downstairs. Turning back to face the dogs he said, "Max, protect children!" He pointed toward the door and the bionic dog was suddenly on his feet, as Jaime came out of their bedroom wearing her pajamas and house slippers.

"It's downstairs. You go with Max," he told her just before racing down the stairs toward the living room. A gun barked three times and then was lost in the sound of the perimeter alarms going off.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he ran headlong into the alien, Falen who was on his way up. Steve dropped his shoulder and slammed the man in the stomach and through the wall into the closet at the foot of the stairs. The alien sneezed once from the dust of powdered drywall as he crashed into the reinforced brick on the outside of the house.

Hitting the bottom of the stairs he pulled the wood post at the base of the handrail loose and charged across the room where another of the alien intruders was slamming his fist repeatedly into someone on the floor. A third intruder lay across the coffee table, a pool of blood spreading from his head.

Without thinking, he launched himself across the room, cleared the couch in a single bound and slammed the post into the attacker's head. He wasn't playing nice. His grandkids were in danger here, and his son had already been killed by these bastards. He barely glanced at the black-haired man that hit the fireplace with bone crushing force. Stopping to check and make sure the man on the table was out of the fight, he realized that he had been shot right through the eye and into the brain pan. No bionics were going to save him from that kind of a blow.

Spinning on the spot, Steve swung the post in his hand hard like a baseball bat, catching the alien at the base of the skull and driving his face deep into the bricks of the fireplace. He slid to the floor not moving.

Looking down, he could see the battered form of agent McGee on the ground. He was barely breathing and look like he'd taken a severe beating, and several of his bones were sticking out through his skin. Before he could react, Falen burst through the door of the closet, brushing the pieces of wood and plaster off his body and sneezing several times. Before he could get clear, Kate kicked the front door off its hinges and into the alien cyborg. As the man stumbled up the stairs, the heavy mahogany door splintering around him, there was a roar and several barks and growls upstairs.

Literally flying down the stairs, a dark-haired form landed on top of fallen man and with an incoherent cry, Harper drove a tiny hand into the side of the man's neck pulling back a bloody box from underneath the skin. Falen at that point simply stopped moving as Harper looked over at Steve, tears standing in the child's eyes. "Sasquatch is upstairs with Bethany, Haven, and Grandma Jaime."

Blue eyes danced around the room studying it. Steve had no idea what his grandchild was seeing, he had no idea what enhancements, Harper's Vaengi blood granted, save for telescopic and dark vision. Standing up, Steve could see the black wings folding against Harper's back. Then a leap, and with two strokes of those wings, the tweenager cleared the sofa to land beside Agent McGee. "Uncle Tim! NO!" Harper screamed as Jim Castillian and Geffin from Apploy's colony came through the door.

He pointed toward McGee and said, "Can you get him to Apploy?"

Geffin nodded and raced over to the man. Before he could arrive, Harper's little fist once again drove into the side of the neck of each of the downed men, coming out with two other bloody units. Handing the units to Geffin, Harper said, "Give these to Grandfather. He'll know what to do."

Geffin looked at the bloody devices with horror evident on his face and then over to the child. Swallowing hard, he took the mergeron power packs from the tiny hand, then reached down, grabbed Tim, and then touched a stud on his TLC before winking out of sight.

"What in God's name do you think you're doing crashing down here like that?" Steve demanded. "You could have been killed!"

Harper's wings slowly retracted back into the child's body as if trying to withdraw from the scolding. "Without the mergeron power packs their nyosynthetics are useless."

"That's rather vicious, Harper," Kate said. "You probably killed them."

"They killed mom and dad," the child said with a defiant tone. "They hurt Uncle Tim. They deserve whatever they get."

"Turning feral on us?" Kate asked.

Steve shook his head and reached over and pulled the small teary-eyed child into his arms. "It's okay, Harper. We just don't want you to get hurt."

Harper spoke, face buried in Steve's chest, "Too late, Grandpa. They already hurt us. They killed Mom and Dad, and they hurt Uncle Tim. I want to hurt them back."

Steve looked over at Kate and Jim saying, "Secure the grounds, make sure there are no more of them, and call Gibbs and tell him his agent has been hurt."

"Got it," Jim said. Turning toward the door, he stopped for a moment and said, "Harper, I understand completely." Then without another word, the man left through what was left of the front door. Steve expected that from Jim Castillian. The man was an orphan himself and had once told him that if he had ever had a father, he'd hoped he'd been like Steve. He would sympathize quite easily with Harper, Haven, and Bethany losing their parents.

Steve guided the child upstairs to find Jaime standing outside Harper's bedroom door. She looked at the child under his arm and said, "You flew out of here before I could stop you. You need to let the grown-ups handle it." Then spotting Harper's bloody hands, she asked, "What happened?"

"Harper took out their batteries," Steve said with a wink. "McGee's been hurt. Geffin is taking him to Apploy. Their medical facilities can do more for him than we can. He looked to be in pretty bad shape. I didn't think we had time to get him to the local hospital. He did manage to kill one of them though."

Then, a form he'd not seen in decades ducked through the door and growled softly in assent. "Hey big fella," Steve said to Sasquatch. Looking down the giant creature grunted to him. It was then Steve noted that he was holding Bethany in one arm, and that the blonde little girl was asleep against his shoulder.

Jaime looked at Harper and said, "Well, go wash your hands. You're not going back to bed with them looking like that."

"Harper?" Steve said to the child.

Turning, Harper asked, "Yeah, Grandpa?"

"We love you," Steve said.

"Love you too Grandpa," Harper said disappearing into the bathroom at the end of the hall.

Jaime turned to Haven and asked, "Do you have any idea why Harper did that?"

With a nod of the head, Haven said, "Harper thinks we should have stayed and fought alongside Dad. That if he hadn't been trying to get us in the safe-room, Dad would still be alive. Harper said we won't be put in a situation where we're safe while someone else dies."

"Harper says?" Jaime asked. "What does Haven say?"

"I agree," Haven said grimly. "I told Harper where to find the mergeron cells." The child shrugged and said, "Next one of Nedlick's men I meet, I'm going to do just what Harper did, but with my mind."

"Haven," Jaime said kneeling next to the dark-haired child. "Let us take care of it. You're too young to become killers."

"I know you are worried about us becoming some kind of monsters, Grandma, but that's not what is happening," Haven said.

"Then what _is_ happening, Haven?" Jaime asked the child.

"You and Grandpa are completely human. You understand what violence is. Grandfather and his people are scientists and for the most part believe in non-violence. For our genetics, mother chose two races who are just as capable of violence as humans. We're simply protecting our family. We don't want to hurt anybody. But they killed Mom and Dad. Now, they've hurt Uncle Tim. We're not going to let them hurt anybody else." From inside the bedroom, Sasquatch growled again in assent.

"You keep out of it you big lug," Jaime told him with a frustrated smile.

The giant nyosynthetic being chuckled as he put down Bethany with a gentleness nobody would ever expect. Jaime turned back to Haven and said, "I just don't want to see my grandchildren turned into killers."

"Too late for that Grandma," Harper said coming out of the bathroom. "We both killed Nedlick's men when they attacked the house. Now I killed two more."

"And how do you feel about that?" Jaime asked.

Harper stopped and said, "I felt them die in my mind. I didn't like it. I didn't want to do it. But at that time it was either them or us. Tonight, it was either them, or Grandpa, and Uncle Tim. I'm not happy about killing someone. I can still feel them dying in my mind. It's horrible, and I hope to never have to do it again, but I will if they try to hurt Haven or Bethany."

Jaime turned to look at Haven and asked, "And you?"

Haven asked, "I felt it as strongly as Harper. Where Harper goes, I go," the other twin said sadly.

Jaime nodded her head and said, "Back to bed, all of you."

"Can Sasquatch stay in our room?" Harper asked going up to hug the huge alien creature.

Jaime couldn't help but chuckle. Hiding her smile behind her hand she said, "I don't' see why not. Max can stay in there too."

"And Jethro?" Haven asked.

"And Jethro too," Jaime said.


	8. Chapter 8: Found Them!

CHAPTER 8

(AUTHOR'S NOTE: _I just discovered that there was a fifth Bigfoot episode which I WILL BE IGNORING AS IT BREAKS ITS OWN CANON) Also, I apologize for the delay, but my novel Godstones 2: Re-Ignition came back from the proofreader on Friday and I've been working on getting it published. It pays me money. *grin*)_

Tim swam up from the depths to consciousness. He hurt. He hurt all over. He hurt in places that weren't even hit in the attack. Slowly opening his eyes to the bright light in the room he found a rather worried looking heavy set bearded stranger looking down on him. "I see you have finally decided to come back to us."

"Who are you?" Tim managed to croak out, his voice sounding weak and scratchy to his own ears.

The man smiled and checked on several monitors beside Tim's bed. "My name is Apploy. I am Gillian's father. I'm here to help."

"Help?" Tim asked confused.

The older man nodded his head solemnly and said, "Your wounds were much more severe than Doctor York thought initially. There was massive internal damage. He asked me in to help."

"Asked you to help?" Tim asked groggily. "How?"

Apploy smiled softly and said, "You would have died had we not used our Time Line Converters to slow down your metabolism until we could get you stabilized. Then we used them again to complete the necessary surgeries to repair the damage Nedlick's man did to you. I'm afraid that you are going to be bruised, and very sore for a few days, but you will be okay."

"Harper, Haven?" Tim asked.

Then Director Austin's face came into the picture, "The kids are safe. You just concentrate on getting better."

Tim started to nod his head and realized that he couldn't move, couldn't feel his body. "What's happened to me?"

"We're using a neuro-inhibiter to keep you from moving right now while your body stitches itself back together. The Neotraxin will help with that, but it's best you don't move for a while."

"How long?" Tim asked.

"A day at the most," Apploy told him with an almost distracted tone.

"How long have I been out?" Tim reiterated?"

"For you," Apploy told him, "A week or so, for the world around you, just a few hours. I suspect Agent Gibbs will be in to see you soon."

"Where am I?" Tim asked.

"We've moved you to a secure ward at Bethesda. Kate and Agent Bishop have managed to discover that Nedlick is now after you too."

"Me?" Tim asked.

Director Austin nodded his head and said, "Yeah. He found out that you are Harper and Haven's guardian. He wants you out of the way because you know about them."

"What if he attacks while I'm in here?"

The Director chuckled and said, "Kate is going to be right outside."

"But the children..." Tim protested. "Who will be with them?"

"Jaime, and an old friend of ours," the Director told them. "Trust me, Nedlick does not want to tangle with what's waiting for him there."

"Where are they?" Tim asked.

"Agent Gibbs insisted on keeping them at his place." The director stopped a moment and asked, "Did you know he's building a boat in his basement?"

Tim tried to nod, but again found himself unable to. "Yes sir," he said.

"Well, Jaime and our friend is there with them."

"Your friend?" Tim asked. "Who is he?"

Before the director could reply, Tim heard the door to the room open and Gibbs' face entered his area of perception. Tim wondered why his eyes seemed to itch and his vision was so blurry around the edges.

"You need anything McGee?" Gibbs asked seriously.

"Just and update, Boss."

Gibbs sipped his coffee and said, "Bishop, Tony, and Abby are tearing apart the city looking for this Nedlick guy. Bishop has had a couple of leads and Abby is analyzing some of the dirt found on the men's shoes. The problem is that with these TLC things, they could be just about anywhere. The OSI recovered several of the power sources for these nyosynthetic implants and that means they can't use them to create any more robot soldiers."

Director Austin gave Gibbs a startled look at the comment, but said nothing. Tim on the other hand told him, "Got it, Boss."

"They tell me that they've got you paralyzed until whatever this wonder drug they gave you gets finished doing it's magic. You just hold in there. We'll take care of the kids for you McGee. Family first." Coming from Gibbs, that simple comment hellp quell a lot of his fears.

"Thanks, Boss," Tim told the man who'd been like a father to him this past decade. Then it him. Gibbs _had_ been like a father to him for over ten years. That was nearly a quarter of his life. In many ways, he'd spent more time with his boss than he had with his own father. It was a sobering thought.

Director Austin leaned over and said, "Just relax Agent McGee. You and I are going to have a long talk when you get out of that bed. You're going to get better. Better, stronger, faster."

That was the last thing that Tim remembered before Apploy touched a control on the bed and the darkness took him again.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs left the hospital room and waited for Director Austin to exit. "A word with you, Director," he said walking up to the man. Colonel Austin turned around and Gibbs asked, "Exactly what is going on? That's one of my team in there and I can't get anything out of the hospital other than that he's listed and stable and that he's been temporarily paralyzed while an experimental drug is used to help him heal faster. Now I want some answers about all that, Director."

The man nodded to him and said, "All right. McGee's injuries were fatal. The only thing that saved him was the TLC module that was used on him. Furthermore, even with Doctor York's experience, he died three times on the operating table. His liver, both his kidneys, his bladder, his spleen, and one of his lungs were pulverized. His back was broken in six places, and his left arm was pulled out of socket. His skull was nearly completely crushed, and there was serious damage to his optic nerves, both of them. Doctor York asked for Apploy to help. They used the TLCs to warp time around him to give him a fighting chance."

"What about those nyosynthetics implants?" Jethro asked. The broken back was enough to worry him.

"Why do you think he's paralyzed right now?' We have to give the implants time to stitch themselves into his nervous system, and then interface with the controlling computer placed in his chest. He's going to have a long road to recovery, but he _will_ recover, and he will not only walk again, but he'll run. Run faster than myself, or even Kate."

"And I suppose you'll be transferring him out of NCIS?" Jethro demanded.

Colonel Austin shook his head and said, "Come have a cup of coffee with me, Agent Gibbs. Let's talk about why I want to leave him at NCIS."

Jethro nodded and replied, "That might be a good idea." He wasn't comfortable with a lot of what he'd seen and was genuinely worried about losing McGee, both to the OSI and the man dying.

Half an hour later, the two men were settling into a corner table in Gibbs' favorite diner. It was late at night so the place was empty and they could speak in low tones. "You have something to tell me, Director?" Gibbs asked.

The former astronaut sighed and said, "When I had my accident, it was bad. I hated Doctor Wells, and Oscar Goldman for saving me, for turning me into," he paused and looked around to make sure nobody was listening before he said with a smile, "as you call us, robot men."

"I meant no disrespect, Director," Gibbs protested.

Austin held up a hand and said, "You and I come from a different era, Gibbs. I know you're just coping with it the way you always have. You Marines have a motto: _Improvise, adapt, and overcome._ That's all you're doing, Gibbs, and I recognize that. No offense is taken." He leaned back into the booth and said, "And to be honest, I understand the term. Like I said, I was miserable and feeling sorry for myself and wanted to know why they didn't just let me die."

Jethro nodded and said, "I've met a few wounded warriors who felt the same way. It's a stage of adaptation they have to go through."

Austin nodded and said, "My wife, Jaime went through the same thing after her skydiving accident. The same for my son, Michael after he crashed. The only people who didn't seem to have a problem with it were people who were completely briefed on it beforehand, and it was to help them recover from a debilitating condition that had confined them to a wheelchair."

"Like Miss Fielding," Jethro said.

Austin nodded and replied, "Yes, like Miss Fielding. But we've had our failures too, and we've learned to look for the kinds of personalities that can't handle the responsibility, and Miss Fielding fits that description. I believe she's already been reprimanded for hacking your computers."

Gibbs nodded and said, "I understand what you're saying."

"Good," Austin told him. "But one of the things we've found that helps people adapt is a strong support system around them. We believe that Tim's support system inside NCIS is more than strong enough. He has friends that he sees as family, and then he has his grandmother."

"And the kids," Gibbs said. "There is definitely going to be a problem with trying to raise a couple of kids, that aren't exactly normal." Jethro was sure that Austin understood what he meant. He'd figured out quite a few things after seeing the Austin's living room, or what was left of it. If those kids were half as powerful as Gibbs suspected, then as normal human, parenting them was going to be a major challenge.

"Exactly," Austin said. "I won't say that McGee's injuries are lucky, but they do offer us an opportunity to help him address those differences."

Jethro nodded and then asked, "And the reason you want to leave him at NCIS is because of the way our team works?"

Austin smiled at him. Something about Jethro's choice of words seemed to have pleased him. "That, and I don't want an agent who doesn't want to work for me. I've been on the receiving end of trying to strong arm agents into service. Both the OSI and NCIS can benefit from Agent McGee staying where he is of his own volition. His life is going to be going through a lot of changes over the next few weeks, and the stability of his friends and work environment will help him adjust."

"These things don't happen without conditions, Director," Jethro said.

Austin shrugged and said, "You're right. They don't. Agent McGee has already agreed to the conditions."

"Which are?" Jethro asked.

Director Austin smiled and said, "Visitation rights."

"You're using government resources to insure that you get to see your grandkids?" Jethro demanded surprised.

Shaking his head, Austin told him, "No. I'm using Apploy's resources. None of McGee's treatment came through the OSI, that is except for Doctor York's involvement, but his services are covered by McGee's government insurance. This is the first time that Apploy's technology has been implanted into a human. York is going to be studying that."

Smiling Jethro sat back and asked, "Is there any danger to Tim?"

"Not really. We know it's possible, we just never had a reason to do it. The government's involvement in this has gotten too expensive. This is a freebie, I'm not about to turn down."

"Why?" Gibbs asked.

"Why what?" Austin asked.

"Why would this alien help you save my agent?" Gibbs asked.

The director smiled and said, "Because he was Gillian's father. He's doing it for the same reason I am. To protect his grandchildren."

Jethro chuckled and said, "Now that's something I can understand."

"I'm glad, Agent Gibbs," the director told him. "I really don't want to fight with you about this."

Jethro shrugged and said, "You're helping my agent, and my friend. I'm not going to complain. I just want to make sure I know what strings are attached."

"Understood," Austin told him. "I think we understand each other, Gibbs."

"I do too," Gibbs told him. "I do too."

Jaime Austin paid a great deal of attention to the home where they'd moved the children. A master bedroom where the mattress appeared to have not been slept upon in years, but a sofa that looked battered was among the first things that caught her eyes. The basement where they'd decided it was best to conceal Sasquatch had not escaped her notice either. She wondered how Gibbs was planning to get the boat he was building out of the room.

The spare bedroom however was well furnished with an antique white bed, vanity, and chest of drawers. Jaime smiled at the sight, it was just like the one she had had as a teenager when she moved in with the Elgins after her parents had been killed in that accident.

She didn't think the kids would care as the three of them settled in to the white double bed. Max and Jethro were on the floor on either side of the bed, one watching the room's single window and the other watching the door. As Bethany snuggled in between Harper and Haven, the Harper rolled over so that the child was lying stomach down. Then a set of black wings spread out. One covered the other two children on one side and the other brushed against Max on the floor.

Jaime understood. Harper was physically the strongest of the three children, and was taking the role of protector quite seriously. Flying downstairs at the Austin home and relieving Nedlick's men of their Mergeron packs proved just how far Harper would go to protect the other two.

"We're family Grandma," Harper said sensing he thought. "It was for you, for them, for Grandpa, and for Uncle Tim," Harper said, fighting a losing battle with sleep.

Jaime stroked the child's raven locks, then leaned down and kissed all three before backing quietly out of the room. Closing the door in front of her, she turned and headed downstairs where she found Jim Castillian settling in at the table. "I stopped for Chinese. I got enough for both of us, Jaime," he said indicating the several white and red boxes sitting in front of him.

"Thanks," she said joining him. "From the look of Agent Gibbs' fridge, I would say he eats out a lot."

Jim smiled and said, "Bachelors do that." Taking a bite of the General's chicken," she smiled but said nothing else. Jim took a swig of his soda and asked, "How is Agent McGee?"

Jaime finished chewing, wiped her mouth daintily and said, "York said that he's out of the woods. He and Apploy did some creative settings on the TLCs to get him there though."

"Did Apploy really supply him with nyosynthetics?"

Jaime nodded and said, "Yeah. He went all out with a complete suite. He'll easily be as effective as Kate, possibly more so since he's a certified genius and already an experienced field agent."

"Who's going to train him?" Jim asked.

"Probably Kate," Jaime said with a smile. "I'm getting a little old to be outrun by people half my age."

Jim smiled and said, "So is the OSI coming out of the catacombs?"

Jaime shook her head and said, "No. It works better the way it is. Tim is staying with NCIS. He may eventually come over to work for us, but if he does, it'll be his decision. For now, we'll work with him, not the other way around."

"How are the kids?" he asked looking upstairs.

"Scared," she said.

"Even Harper?" Jim asked.

"Especially, Harper," Jaime said. "Harper takes on too many responsibilities. I never wanted any of my grandchildren to kill people, much less before they were out of their tweens."

"Harper and Haven are a lot more mature than any of us give them credit for," Jim told her. "I think it has something to do with their genetics."

"What do you mean?" Jaime asked.

"Gillian once told me that the two races she used to create them don't age the same way we do. She said, that because of their telepathic abilities, they would mature mentally much more quickly than physically."

"She told me pretty much the same thing," Jaime said with a nod.

"Did she tell you that the races they are built from have dual puberties?" Jim asked.

"No?" Jaime asked raising an eyebrow. "Exactly how did that kind of conversation even come up?"

Jim shrugged and told her, "Mike told me. Let's face it, androgynous they may be, but the twins are very attractive. I was kidding him about needing to buy a shotgun in a few years. He told me that he wasn't worried, that they would be in their eighties before they would be fully mature."

"So they're going to be children for eighty years?" Jaime asked wondering how she could have missed that little piece of information.

"I asked the same thing," Jim said shaking his head. "Mike said that Gillian told him that the twins would go through two kinds of puberty. The first would be about the normal time for a human, but they wouldn't become fertile. He said that according to his wife, they would reach about the physical age of twenty when their aging would slow to about a year per every five or ten years, and then wouldn't become fertile until about eighty. Then their aging would stop."

Jaime sat back and raised an eyebrow, knowing that her surprise had to be showing on her face. "I wonder why she didn't tell me that?"

Jim shrugged and said, "Probably had plans for it, but...," he paused and then looked at the food on his plate, trying to hide his own feelings. "I guess things happened before she got a chance to." Jaime nodded and reached over and touched the other agent's hand. She knew that with Michael's death, Jim had lost a best friend. That was something that they'd all sort of overlooked. Jim was doing his job, being the professional, and putting his own loss on the back burner until he could be sure that his friends' children were safe. He looked up at her and said, "We're going to get these bastards Jaime. We're going to make them pay."

Jaime just nodded. She didn't like the idea of revenge as a reason for doing the job, but she understood it. She understood it was part of being an OSI agent, and more importantly, of simply being a male. Jim wanted to lash out, he wanted to hurt the people that had hurt his friends. It was normal. "I know, Jim. I know. But for now we've got to track them down."

Jim made to say something but she held up her hand as she heard someone coming up the walk. A few seconds later, Elanor Bishop came through the front door with a pleased look on her face. "What?" Jaime asked.

"I found them," the NCIS agent whispered with a smile.

"Where?" Jim asked.

Ellie shook her head and held up her hand. Taking out her phone, she hit a button and Jaime felt her phone buzz. Evidently so did Jim's. Both of them took out their devices and saw a message come up, "I'm not sure we're not being listened to. Open the attachment."

Smiling, Jaime touched the button to open the ap and saw the map appear. She was surprised when she saw where was indicated. Rudy's old Bionic Facility in Colorado was on the map. It was where she stayed after coming out of cryogenic storage. It had been closed down during budget cuts in the nineties. Jaime just frowned and nodded.


	9. Chapter 9: Emeralds and Bodies

CHAPTER 9

(Author's note: Sorry for the delay on reposting. I had relapse of fluid on my heart and it sort of took me out of the picture for a while. Hopefully, I'll be back to updating on a more regular basis as my health improves.)

Despite his best efforts, Tony couldn't get the image of McGee's bruised face out of his mind. According to Gibbs, Tim had died on the operating table and only the aliens' advanced technology had been able to save him. Although Tony would never admit it, over the years he'd become quite fond of the younger agent, and had even come to see him as family—as the little brother he'd never had. He didn't like the feelings the thoughts of losing his friend brought to his mind.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said slapping him the back of the head. "You paying attention?"

Tony looked over in the rapidly fading evening light to where Gibbs was pulling on his own bullet-proof vest, NCIS stenciled in white across it. "I'm paying attention, Boss," Tony told him. Then repeating the instructions, he added, "Bishop and I are to take the side entrance. You are going in the back, and Mrs. Summers and Agent Castillian will take the front, and Agent Goldman will take the other side entrance. The place is a maze inside with several hospital and research labs that should have been cleared of any top-secret equipment but may still have regular medical supplies and surgical equipment present. The men inside are to be considered extremely dangerous and I should shoot on sight. Furthermore any displays of bionic or nyosynthentic technology is considered Level Six Security Clearance."

"Good," Gibbs said, his thin lips making a tight line across his face that wasn't quite a frown but wasn't a smile either.

"Agent McGee has already demonstrated that Nedlick's men are vulnerable to a bullet to the eye," Castillian said. "Keep that in mind. They may be strong, but soft tissue is still vulnerable to gunfire." Tony noticed that the other man was not carrying a standard issue government weapon, but instead had in his shoulder holster a small hand cannon in the form of a Desert Eagle .50 cal revolver. Tony did not want to think about having to fire a gun like that.

"Yeah, but they still nearly killed him," Bishop said.

"The other two nearly killed him," Gibbs said. The one he shot was dead before he hit the floor."

"A quick question," Bishop said blushing deeply. "You mentioned soft tissue, are these aliens built like a normal human male?"

Tony, Gibbs, and Castillian all turned toward her in surprise, and Tony said, "Bishop!"

She gave a half nod half shake of her head and said, "Soft tissue is soft tissue."

Mrs. Austin said, "I never discussed any differences he might have noticed among the females, but I'm assuming that it's about the same. Michael and Gillian did after all manage to have a child." Then with a wicked smile, she said, "And I would think they are as vulnerable to that kind of soft tissue damage as a human male. You would really have to ask your Doctors Mallard or Palmer."

"You heard the woman," Castillian said. "Shoot low boys. They're riding Shetland ponies." Tony gave the man a strange look, but Gibbs actually chuckled. That worried Tony.

"Okay, people, let's head out. All communications will be through scrambled transmissions," Gibbs said, as he started across the hills that lead behind the small hospital-like building.

Tony nodded as he and Bishop worked their way along the western edge of the property to a small entrance located on the side of the building. Evidently it was some kind of delivery entrance. Noting the heavy steel door was locked, he looked over at Bishop and asked, "Now what?"

Bishop smiled at him and pulled a set of keys from her pocket. "I got the keys from Mrs. Austin," she said.

Tony nodded and mentally kicked himself. He guessed that Tim's condition really did have him more upset than he wanted to admit. He watched as Ellie quickly put the keys to use and opened the door outward.

Inside was a long dark hallway without any signs of light anywhere. Only the last rays of the setting sun filtered through the heavy glass window in the door behind them gave them any light. Looking again at Ellie, he asked, "Which way?"

Ellie indicated down the hall, and said, "Down to the end of this hall, turn right and then up the stairwell to the second floor. That's where the operating theater and recovery rooms are."

"And you think that's where they'll be?"

"Ellie shrugged and said, "Probably the recovery rooms. I doubt we're going to catch them in the middle of any kind of operation. I think Nedlick is running out of men fast. He's lost nine out of a total of sixteen, including himself. He's lost three out of twelve power packs. That leaves seven men—less than half of his forces, and two extra power packs. Things are falling apart on him fast."

Tony was surprised at her conclusions. Ellie was turning into a very good field agent. When she matured, she was going to be hell on wheels. That is, if they survived this case. "Okay, so to the recovery rooms it is," he told her.

Less than five minutes later, they found themselves in the hall of the main floor of the hospital's surgical department. Goldman, Austin, Castillian, and Gibbs were all converging on the same place.

"Any sign?" Gibbs asked in a whisper.

"Nothing," Castillian told him.

Mrs. Austin shook her head but didn't say anything. Tony watched as she brushed the hair over one ear and seemed to listen. Finally, she whispered, "Quiet as a mouse."

"Any signs that they've even been here?" Gibbs asked.

"Oh yeah," Goldman told him. "Several of the hospital suites have been used, the kitchen is a mess, and there are pieces of equipment scattered all over the ambulance bay. Also, there are signs that the power has been restored without going through the power company. Backup generators are depleted."

"Anything else?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah," she said. "I found this," she said handing a small glittering green item to Mrs. Austin."

"Is this what I think it is?" Mrs. Austin asked.

"An emerald," Goldman told her as if that were some how significant.

"What's an emerald got to do with this?" Gibbs demanded.

"Last time Nedlick and his men got loose, they stole several items, including emeralds, gold, titanium, and a rare radioactive isotope of Boron 3. They were going to use them to build a shield around their base that would have been impenetrable to even Apploy's technology."

Gibbs nodded and said, "This place looks like a bust. Let's check out the last area and then head back to the yard and get back to work."

They quickly swept and cleared the hospital suites with nothing of any interest coming up. That just left the operating theater.

Goldman took the lead, and entered the outer doors to the theater first. Tony got a brief wisp of a scent he recognized: that of a decomposing body. He reached out and touched Goldman. She turned back to him and said softly, "I smell it too. Trust me, better than you do."

Tony simply nodded and signaled the rest of the team to be on their toes. When Goldman swept open the door, Tony nearly lost his stomach at the intense smell coming from the room. Hitting the lights, a veritable human (or alien as the case was) chop-shop was scattered around the room. All six of the dead bodies from the Austin's residence were on tables, each one having been opened up and their nyosynthetic components removed. Nedlick had simply discarded his men, and took what he needed. Castillian commented, "I think we can safely say that all of Nedlick's men are now nyosynthetic."

"Ya think?" Gibbs said.

Castillian turned to Gibbs and pointed out, "Stating the obvious is simply a way of making sure that everyone has reached the same conclusion, Agent Gibbs. It's not a sign of stupidity. If you or anybody else has reached a different conclusion, I think it might be worth hearing."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at him. Tony had never seen anybody meet the Boss head on like this. It surprised him.

"I'll get a crew in here to take this place apart," Goldman said. Then looking over at Gibbs she added, "That is unless you'd rather have your own team do it."

Much to Tony's surprise, Gibbs just shook his head and said, "I think your team would be able to better determine what was relevant and what's not. I trust you to make sure we get a complete report."

Goldman smiled at him, getting the message. This was a test to see how well the OSI and NCIS were really going to work together. "Your team all has security level six clearance now, Agent Gibbs. You'll get everything we do."

Gibbs just nodded and pushed past her, "Based on experience with other agencies, that would be a pleasant surprise, Agent Goldman."

When he was out of earshot, Goldman looked to Tony and asked, "What was that all about?"

"We're not used to this level of actual cooperation, Agent Goldman," Tony told her.

She nodded and said, "I think I understand. And call me Kate."

The name hit Tony hard. He shook his head, "No offense, but I'd be more comfortable calling you Agent Goldman. It's nothing personal, just that Tim and I have some history with an agent name Kate."

She nodded and said, "Agent Todd. No offense taken, Agent DiNozzo."

Tony smiled wanly as the rest of the team followed them out of the building. When he felt they were out of earshot of the OSI agents, he looked at Bishop and asked, "Any chance on using the information they just gave us on finding them?"

Ellie shrugged and said, "I will look into it. I really wish we had Tim. I've never heard of an isotope of Boron called Boron 3. Mostly Boron is used in medical treatment. I suspect that if it exists, it's going to have a half-life measured in thousandths of a picosecond."

"What's a picosecond?" Tony asked.

"One quadrillionth of a second," she said as the two followed the others out.

Nedlick looked at his hands in disgust. His enemies had forced him to become like themselves in order to protect himself and his ideals. It was a sobering thought, but he knew the process could eventually be reversed. Still he would always be tainted with the scars of having borne nyosynthetic implants.

Looking over to their new base of operations, he was pleased. Even with the loss of most of his forces he'd managed to evade the OSI and Apploy. Still two attempts on the abominations had failed. Yeah, he'd managed to kill one of the Austins, and he regretted killing Gillian. There were far too few females among his people on this planet, and even if she had polluted herself with lower life forms, he was not happy about killing one of his own.

He had to admit though, that he was more impressed with his human foes this time than his last two encounters. Colonel Austin and Ms. Sommers had gone out of their way not to kill anybody during their last two conflicts. This time around, he'd lost nine of his people. He briefly wondered what had changed in their attitudes.

The other agents, the NCIS people were impressive in their own right. One of them had managed to kill one of his agents, and the others had even been successful in tracking him to his hide out in the Colorado mountains. He was going to have to be on his toes. He still had two power packs left. He knew he could try and recruit a couple of humans to help him, but to be honest, he didn't trust any humans not to turn on him. So for now, he had to make do with what he had.

Of course what he had wasn't that bad. Still, the very existence of the three abominations that were the misbegotten spawn of Michael Austin ate at his soul. His people were never meant to pollute their genes with other races, not human, not Vaengi, and not even Daeoni. The One Above Them All had created his people with a singularly unique set of genetic codes and such hybrids was a desecration of that gift.

"Nedlick?" Toran, asked from the hatchway to the room he'd chosen for himself.

"Yes?" he asked.

"The reactor is operational," the man said.

"Good," he replied. Then turning to the other man he asked, "And the shielding?"

"Satellites won't be able to detect an active reactor," the man replied. "Nobody knows that we're here, and they won't know it until it's all over."

Nedlick nodded and said, "Good." There is more than one way to kill a target, and if I have to take out a few million humans in the process, well as they say, you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs."

"We're going to have to move fast if we're going to cause this meltdown and overload, Nedlick. To get the kind of fallout you want, the reactors are going to have to be fully operational. That's going to mean an increased chance of the overhaul team noticing us."

Nedlick nodded and said, "Just program the safeties not to kick in and not to show up on the indicator boards. I don't want the crews to know whats happening until it's too late."

"Understood," the man said with a grim smile as he disappeared through the hatchway.

Nedlick reached over and patted the bulkhead and said, "It's appropriate that a ship named for the founder of this country will be used to destroy its capital." Then turning back to the hatchway, he looked again at his hands and said to himself, "Now if they'll just take the bait I left them and run with it, they'll all be dead before they realize that he'd set them on a false trail." He grinned at that thought.


	10. Chapter 10: My Brain Itches

CHAPTER 10

 _(Author's note: I'm just wondering if anybody picked up the third television show Easter egg in Chapter 4._

 _Dang! I just looked at the word count on this thing. I was supposed to be writing this for fun and as a "palate cleanser" before starting a new project, but just realized I've crossed the official line into novel length!)_

This whole situation felt off to Steve. A single emerald might have been left behind by mistake, but he didn't think so. Furthermore, there had been no thefts of the other components needed to build the phase lock magneton shield. He needed to talk to Apploy, no to be honest, he needed to talk to Shalon, but that wasn't possible. If they awoke her now, she'd die from the radiation poisoning that Nedlick had caused with his rebellion years ago. Next in line to talk to would be Gillian, but again, that wasn't an option for obvious reasons.

He really wasn't sure who he could turn to at this point. Rudy was gone, York was so specialized as to be useless outside the field of biomedical engineering, and there was nobody in the OSI who was working on anything like that anymore. That was one of the problems of being buried so deep: funding was hard to come by. He sat back in his chair at the desk and considered his options very carefully. He hated the idea of going outside the agency any more than he already had.

Two hours later, he was no closer to solving the problem when his secretary announced that Jim Castillian and one of Apploy's men were wanting to see him. Telling the woman to send them in, Steve stood and went to the corner window that overlooked the capital, trying his best to channel the spirit of Oscar Goldman.

"Colonel Austin," Jim said. "Geffin has some information that I think you need to hear."

"Go ahead," Austin turned to the other man.

"Nedlick can't build the shield generator," the man said simply.

"Why?" Steve asked.

"Because he doesn't have the power converter from our home base. He could have all materials he needed a hundred times over, and it wouldn't do him any good. That power converter is key to making the phase lock magneton work."

"Could he use another source?" Steve asked. "Maybe nuclear or hydroelectric? He was using geothermal before."

"He was using geothermal for raw power. Raw power won't help him. He needs the power converter to turn the raw power into an energy field. He doesn't have that, and there's no way he can get that."

"Could he make one of his own?" Steve asked.

The man shook his head and said, "No. Not without several alloys and materials not readily available on earth, and at this point you still don't have the infrastructure to manufacture," the man told him.

"So the emerald was a ruse?" Steve asked.

Geffin took a deep breath and said, "Nedlick does not see your people as advanced enough to understand the nuances of his thinking. His attitude is that you are barely more advanced than Sasquatch's species."

"We call people like that narcissists," Jim said.

"So I'm told," Geffin replied. Steve kept to himself what other group of people he thought fit that bill.

Taking his own breath, he asked, "So what would Nedlick's fall-back position be?"

"He's lost most of his forces in head-on attacks. He's throwing away his own people with abandon. Since a head-on attack is not accomplishing what he wants, he may fall back onto our original mission here."

Steve nodded and said, "Apploy told me that this era closely paralleled a similar period in in your own history. That you were here to study it in order to better understand your own history. I believe the term he used was violent."

Geffin nodded and said, "Exactly. It would seem that Nedlick isn't above the same kind of violence."

"But what does that have to do with his next move?" Steve asked.

"One of the problems that plagued our world and yours is radicals who are willing to use weapons of mass destruction to make their points."

"But I thought you said you don't have any weapons on Earth," Steve said.

"We don't," Geffin replied. "But you do. And, with his TLC he would very easily be able to get past whatever security you might put into place."

"So, he's likely to launch a nuclear weapon at the city just to kill my grandkids?"

Geffin considered Steve's question and shook his head, "i don't think he'd resort to anything that could set off a war. I think he's more likely to create a disaster that can be blamed on an accident." He stopped and said, "Like what happened at your Chernobyl."

Steve nodded and thought about what he said. "Wait a minute, the closest nuclear power plant to the city is Calvert Cliffs. That's downwind of not only the capital, but is also outside the kill zone for that kind of disaster. It would hit Delaware and Maryland but miss the city."

"Colonel Austin," Jim said. "Don't forget that there are several nuclear powered vessels at dock."

Steve nodded and said, "He would still need to come and go. You just can't set a nuclear reactor to blow and do what he wants it to do. He's going to have to infiltrate the ship, disengage the reactor's safeties, ramp the power up and keep the crew from stopping him before he got off. That's not going to be easy."

"Nedlick is very resourceful," Geffin said.

Steve nodded and asked, "Have you told anyone else about this?"

Geffin shook his head and said, "No. Agent Castillian thought it best to bring it to you first."

Steve replied, "Good. Now I want you head over the Navy Yard and inform Director Vance and his MCRT about your theory."

"Do you think he'll listen?" Castillian asked. "He wasn't very happy about the way we do things."

"He'll listen if it'll save lives. Just make sure that Agent Gibbs knows to."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to send Kate in to do some snooping around," Steve said.

Jim nodded and said, "Good luck."

"Isn't that what I'm supposed to tell you?" Steve asked with a slight smile.

"I'm not the one dealing with Kate Goldman," he said.

"I see your point," Steve told him. "Now get out of here."

Okay, it had been the strangest couple of weeks Tim had ever been through. And halfway through it all, much to her chagrin, Mrs. Austin once again found herself in the role of teacher and counselor as she slowly put Tim through his paces. Kate Goldman had been called off on assignment to investigate something for Director Austin, so Mrs. Austin had been drafted. Of course they, along with Doctor York had been forced to use borrowed Time Line Converters from Apploy's people to see that he was up and around as soon as possible. It was during this second week that he finally met Jim Goldman, nephew of the late Oscar Goldman, the former Director of the OSI.

Jim was a tall fit man who liked to run. Tim remembered the man having been in line for the gold at the World Unity Games, but a boating accident had temporarily put him in a wheelchair. The rest of the information was classified, and Tim had never felt like digging for it. What he discovered however was that he had a wicked sense of humor. The slightly older man had managed to cheer Tim up several times over the past few weeks when he thought he was going to sink into despair.

The whole time compression was strange to him, and he knew it was probably going to cause him some difficulty when he got back to the Yard. For one, he realized that intellectually, he was going to be farther along in the grieving process than the others, not only for his friends, but for his failed relationship with Delilah. That was going to cause some problems.

Tim had started keeping time with two watches. He kept his sports watch on him which kept what felt like normal time to him while using the TLC. He kept his old gold and silver wristwatch on the table by his bed so that he could keep how much time was passing in the world around him. From his best estimates, his TLC was set to allow him to experience a week for every sixteen hours. He had no idea how long he'd been under its influence while in surgery or recovery. It looked like about two and half maybe three days had passed since the night of the fight in the Austin house.

Coming back from a run with Mrs. Austin, he sat back down on the bed and watched the people frozen in time around him. "This feels so strange," he told her. "And I keep getting this buzzing sound. I don't know if it's in my head or part of the nyosynthetic augmentations."

The older woman gave him a grave look and asked, "Have you spoken to Doctor York about it?"

Tim nodded and said, "Yeah. He can't find a problem. Even Apploy checked it out and couldn't find the source."

Jaime gave him a stern look and said, "Listen to what I've got to say very carefully, Tim. Anytime, I mean _anytime,_ that your bionics don't feel right, or you get some kind of interference, you need to report it to Doctor York immediately. I can't tell you the number of times some interference in our bionics has been a clue to resolving the mission."

"Really?" Tim asked surprised.

"Oh yeah," Jaime said.

"Such as?" Tim asked.

"Well, there was Doctor Franklin's Fembots. The first series caused an interference with my bionic ear. Before, during the rescue of Athena One, Steve almost lost all power to his bionics. That was the real reason Major Kelly had to pilot the rescue vessel back. Steve's bionics were seizing up on him. That's not to mention the problems we had when our bionics had been infected with a computer virus." She smiled at him and for some reason, she reminded him of Ellie. "So yeah, that's one of the most important things about being bionic. You _have_ to tell someone when there's a problem. You never know what it might mean."

"Yes ma'am," Tim said.

She looked at him questioningly and asked, "Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

He shrugged and said, "Go ahead."

"You know that Steve, and I both went through a difficult period of adjusting to being bionic. Even Kate did. But you seem to be having little problem adjusting. What gives, kiddo?"

Tim shrugged and said, "I guess because I've known about bionics for so long that the idea seems kind of normal to me. Furthermore, like Kate, I got to keep my original parts. I just got some new accessories."

She nodded to him and said, "Makes sense, I guess."

Before Tim could reply he felt that buzzing again. "There it is. Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?" Jaime asked. "Do you want me to get Doctor York?"

"It's gone now," Tim told her. "For just a second, it felt like my brain was itching."

He watched as the woman got up and went over to check some of the readouts on the equipment. She ran a scan backwards a bit and then printed it out and circled it. "You've had a significant spike in alpha wave brain activity."

Tim gave her a confused look. "My eyes weren't closed."

Jaime smiled at him in surprised, "I guess I should have known that you'd understand what Alpha Waves are."

"Any idea why the spike?" Tim asked.

The older woman shook her head and said, "None."

Tim sighed and then looked at her, "It doesn't seem to be interfering with my bionic interface, it's just annoying, and it's not all the time. So when can I get out of here and go back to work?"

"We're just wrapping things up now, Agent McGee," Doctor York said coming through the door. Tim glanced down and saw the TLC the doctor was wearing was set to the same speed as his and Jaime's. He was a tall thin, handsome man in his late forties early fifties. His blond hair was just starting to silver at his temples and his gray eyes were bright and alert behind the black glasses he wore. He was dressed in a white lab coat that hung over his white shirt and blue tie like a tent.

"That means?" Tim asked.

"That within two hours... " he looked down at the TLC setting, " ...'our time', you'll be released from this facility. They're going to need you at the Yard. Geffin has a theory that is quite frankly terrifying."

"What?" Tim asked.

"I'll wait and let Agent Gibbs tell you," York said. "But he's going to need your expertise."

Tim nodded and asked, "And what should I tell my coworkers about what has happened to me?"

"They're cleared for information on bionics, Apploy's people, Sasquatch, and neotraxin. Tell them as much as you are comfortable with. They understand security," Jaime told him.

Tim nodded and said, "Well, let's get this show on the road." He looked over at Jaime and then back to the doctor and added, "Jaime said I should tell you about anything unusual I'm sensing with my bionics."

"That's a good idea," York said with a smile.

"Well, I've had periods when I feel like my brain is itching," Tim told him. "Show him, Jaime."

With a nod and a smile, Doctor York looked at the readouts. Then going over, he checked the watch that Tim was using to keep time in the outside world and ran some quick numbers through the calculator mounted on his clipboard. With a nod he pushed his glasses up on top of his head and said, "I'm not worried about this right now. If it becomes a problem, let me know and we'll see what we can do to block it. But to be honest, this is an unexpected side-effect of your more advanced bionics. Actually, it's a rather good one."

"My brain itches and it's a good thing?" Tim asked.

"In this case, I'd say yes," the doctor told him.

"What is it?" Tim asked.

The doctor smiled and said, "I think I'll let you figure that out for yourself."

Gibbs watched the three children followed by Bishop, as they came down from upstairs for breakfast. It felt good to have children around the house again, even if it was under such horrifying circumstances. With a smile he set down on the table a pile of bacon, a large bowl of scrambled eggs, white gravy, and homemade biscuits. Damn it had been a long time since he'd cooked like this. "I hope you slept well."

"Yes sir," Haven said quietly. Then looking at the table she said, "Breakfast looks good. Thank you."

The child looked over at the other two and said, "Thank you from all of us."

Gibbs smiled and said, "It's my genuine pleasure. Now eat up. Agent Bishop is about to go off watch, and Agent DiNozzo will be here soon. Least I can do is send her to the Yard with a full stomach."

Bishop smiled and slid into the chair next to them, "Thanks, Gibbs. Any word on McGee?"

"Doctor York called and said that he should be back at the Yard by noon."

"I dreamt of Uncle Tim last night," Haven said. "He was getting better."

Gibbs grinned at the child and said, "I'm sure he is. Your grandfather said that the serum they gave him will make him better much faster."

Harper nodded and said, "The neotraxin. It's very powerful stuff."

"That's what they tell me," Gibbs replied.

"So, still no school today?" Haven asked as the front door opened.

"Did I just hear a kid complain about no school?" Tony DiNozzo asked as he picked up the NCIS bullet-proof vest from the table by the door and began to put it on. "You sure you're not blood related to McGee?"

"We're sure, Agent DiNose-tho," Bethany said, the last syllable whistling through her missing front teeth and distorting the name.

The senior agent gave the little girl a strange look and then said, "Director Vance wants you both at the Yard as soon as you can get there."

"I know," Gibbs said. "I've already been briefed." He then turned to the kids and said, "And don't forget. If there are any problems, you are to head straight to the basement. Your friend is down there and will help take care of you."

Bethany nodded to Gibbs rather seriously. But Jethro noted that both Harper and Haven were a bit hesitant.

"I mean it, guys. We're talking about your lives here. Don't do anything stupid."

Again, the twins looked at each other and then nodded to Jethro and said, "Yes, sir." Gibbs felt his mouth draw into a taught bow of a frown, and he knew this was the best he could get out of the twins right now. They wanted revenge, and were willing to put themselves in danger to get it. He gave DiNozzo a knowing look. The other man nodded understanding.

"Good," Gibbs finally said.

Tony looked at the table and said, "Boss, I didn't know you could cook like this."

Gibbs just shrugged and said, "Some skills a man's got to learn on his own."

Tony just nodded and said, "Got it, Boss." Then looking around, he asked, "Anything I should know?"

"Agent Castillian will be with you a little later. The OSI is giving us as much help as we need, and Director Austin wants two agents on Duty at all times."

Tony nodded and said, "Got it."


End file.
